


doubting desert thunderstorms

by stormsirxn



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Body Horror, Eldritch, Eldritch Ahsoka Tano, Eldritch Anakin Skywalker, Eldritch Obi-Wan Kenobi, Feral Anakin Skywalker, Fialleril's Tatooine slave culture, Force-Sensitive Shmi Skywalker, Kinda, Tatooine Folklore (Star Wars), Tatooine Slave Culture (Star Wars), That's Not How The Force Works (Star Wars), The Force as Eldritch Horror (Star Wars), cosmic horror, he likes his food fresh
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:13:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 28,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28323642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stormsirxn/pseuds/stormsirxn
Summary: Shmi tells her son that he was a miracle. That she prayed to Ar-Amu and asked the great mother of the desert for a son and that the goddess answered her wish.Shmi is a liar.OrThe Force is an Eldritch Horror and the Clone Wars trio are its chosen children.
Relationships: Anakin Skywalker & Ahsoka Tano, Anakin Skywalker & Shmi Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker, Padmé Amidala & Anakin Skywalker
Comments: 278
Kudos: 705
Collections: the peasant's guide to fine reading





	1. achilles come down

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Disconnected Conduit](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24613453) by [Annessarose](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Annessarose/pseuds/Annessarose). 



> so im a firm believer in the idea that anakin was nerfed and he should of been a lot more inhuman that he was made out to be so this came out of it. tbh i have no idea where i'm gonna go after this but im just laying ground work rn so i have a place to start from. i'll be pulling from Fialleril's wonderful Tatooine slave culture, as you can see in this chapter lmao. 
> 
> enjoy!

Shmi tells her son that he was a miracle. That she prayed to Ar-Amu and asked the great mother of the desert for a son and that the goddess answered her wish.

Shmi is a liar.

Shmi was well aware that there was no father involved with her pregnancy. She counts her days too thoroughly to ever lose track of time. She knows what happens to slave women that drop their guard. She did not want to become one of them.

When Ar-Amu placed her child in her womb, Shmi thought she was going to die. She remembers stumbling out into the desert, howling in pure agony. She remembers the feeling of the writhing mass of limbs lashing inside her body screaming with the voice of a thousand tongues echoing across the universe, the power of ten thousand stars making its home inside her blood.

Ar-Amu whispers, _D_ _akkalu_ , strength now, and Shmi holds steady. The pain fades and she is left with a life inside her body, snarling and fierce, promising death to anything that dares attack its mother-vessel. She is not beaten once throughout her pregnancy and if she looks too hard into a mirror, she’ll she something she’s not supposed too.

_(a dragon with hundreds of wings of fire and the tail of a phoenix, too massive to truly comprehend-)_

When her son is born, it does not simply rain on Tatooine. It _pours_. Shmi had only heard about thunderstorms through stories and holos. When her son comes into the world, he brings the first thunderstorm in several thousand years to Tatooine.

The earth shakes, the wind screams, and the sky bellows as the Grandmother of the quarters helps ease her child from between her legs. She wakes to what seems to be a perfectly normal baby in her arms and a world in ruins.

The skies are still grey as she walks around Mos Espa, with no oppressive sun bearing down her back. The ground is split in several places, buildings crumbled to the ground, mudslides wrecking the roads.

She gets word that the entire _planet_ had suffered the same plate and sees footage of mountain ranges being split in two, lightning strikes that set entire cities ablaze, Sand People that had been _frozen_ in the spots they stood, and kyrat dragons that had been picked clean because the earth had shaken so hard it had literally vibrated the flesh off their bones.

Her son giggles and the sky rumbles once more, his eyes flashing in a way no human eyes should.

The slave quarters in Mos Espa, and in every other settlement remain completely untouched.

She gazes down at her infant son that shook the world and bent the sky to his will. She names him Ekkreth. Anakin Ekkreth, the sky-walker, breaker of chains and rain-bringer.

Shmi Skywalker knows that she will not be able to protect her child from a destiny as great as his. But Shmi Skywalker has endured, and she will teach her child to do the same so that he will be able to endure as well.

They’re all depending on it.


	2. control

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is shorter than i wanted but im impatient and wanted to get it out. 
> 
> 'amu' (i think) means mother in amatakka, the tatooine slave dialect.

Anakin grows up knowing that he is not a normal child.

_(normal children don’t forget to bleed, normal children don’t forget to speak with only one voice, normal children can laugh without causing a lightning storm-)_

He made the most of it.

Around _Depur_ he tries to be as much of a normal child as possible. He matures faster than most, knows more than most, learns quicker than most, but slows down enough that it can be written off as something else. His mother taught him better than to slip up in the presence of the masters. Anakin is as much of a shapeshifter as the deity he is named after.

Around the slaves, away from prying eyes, he lets himself breathe. _Ar-Amu’s one true son,_ they whisper. The slave who makes free.

He’s three when he finally snaps and cuts out the _rot-darkness-despair_ hidden in his shoulder. He heals within the day and it doesn’t scar. He offers to do the same to his mother and the rest of the slaves, but both Skywalkers sense that the time isn’t right yet.

 _“Do not fret on matters that do not yet concern you my child.”_ Ar-Amu would whisper. _“When you are ready, you will accomplish all you were promised to do.”_

He makes up for it in other ways. When food ran low in the slave quarters, Anakin would disappear into the desert night. He would always reemerge in the early dawn hours covered in blood, dragging a large bantha carcass behind him like it weighed nothing more than small womprat. If the risings suns hit his eyes right, they would gleam _lethal white-galactic black-starshine orange_ before shifting back into their human blue at the insistence of his mother.

The slaves never said a word, out of both fear and gratitude. Even if the bantha had several chunks missing from it. At least it wasn’t completely stripped of flesh like the corpses of the herds in the Dune Sea.

Despite his more _animalistic_ tendencies, it didn’t stop him from making a few friends. Anakin is half human and half monumental, and the children of the quarters know the same. Some were old enough to remember when Tatooine was shaken to its core on Anakin’s life day and others grow up in the aftermath of it. He isn’t exiled for being different but Shmi’s cool ferocity keeps him from becoming too much of a messiah figure. 

It takes a certain type of strength to run with Skywalkers but Kitster and Wald never had any trouble with keeping up, even if his movements were too fast, too fluid, _too predatory_ , for the other children. They never flinched when he sometimes forgot humans were supposed to have two eyes and four limbs and didn’t complain when he would tear off to go hunt something with a beating heart rather than eat the pre-made meals their masters provided.

He’s grateful for them.

They do, however, give him shit about the pod-racer he’s been building out of spare parts. He doesn’t mind too much, the flak gives him motivation to build it better, make it faster. For all his power, none of it can make the stupid thing run.

He had just dropped a new engine in the racer when he feels two very distinctive bursts of _light-energy-power_ enter Tatooine’s atmosphere.

Shmi is no fool. If she were one, she would not have survived as long as she had. She knows the young girl that Anakin is smitten with, Padmé, is not the simple handmaiden she proclaims to be. She carries herself with too much strength, too much authority, to convince Shmi that she does not have some level of political power on Naboo.

_“Liar, liar, liar.”_

She does everything she tells Anakin not to do when it comes to hiding his power. Padmé is good, but she could do with some more training if she wants to play her part more convincingly.

She knows the Jedi Knight, Qui-Gon Jinn, is eyeing her son with an avid curiosity. He suspects her child is not as normal as he makes himself out to be. She’d be impressed if the Jedi was more covert about his theory.

“Who is the boy’s father?”

She fights back a smile. For being such an accomplished Jedi Knight, he seemed to have missed the fact that Shmi herself carries an ember of Ar-Amu’s gifts. She would not been able to birth Anakin if she did not. Force-sensitivity, he called it. Must be a Core World term.

“There was no father.” She answers simply.

Shmi doesn’t blame him for missing her own Force-sensitivity. She is a single star compared to her son’s universe of power. She has spent her whole life trying to hide herself from detection and taught her son how to do the same.

Shmi knows that her time with her son is ending. At least for now. She knows in her bones that her son’s destiny does not involve him being stuck on Tatooine forever. She can sense the wanderlust in his heart and stardust in his veins. He belongs to the Force and the Force belongs to him. He’ll win the Boonta Eve Classic and with it, his freedom. And if she’s raised him well, he will return to her when it is time.

So the morning of the race, she wakes well before the suns are up, the sky midnight blue boasting three full moons and thousands of twinkling stars, and takes her son to the dunes. She lets him run, hunt, be wild and inhuman because this will be the last time he’ll be in the environment to do so. He stands bloody and proud in the early dawn light, the twin suns highlighting his golden hair, bright eyes-

_(hair of snakes, eyes that are windows to other worlds, wings of fire, venomous fangs, lashing tentacles)_

-and she is filled with an overwhelming sense of pride. Her son is beautiful. The Force’s son is beautiful.

 _“I love you, Amu.”_ Her son says in his mind’s voice. All fifteen thousand of them.

_“I love you too, Ani. So very much."_

Shmi is happy to let him stay out for as long as he possibly can but her child stops suddenly. He turns and stares out into the desert, head cocking.

"Do you feel that, Amu?" Anakin's eyes are glowing, the energy around them rippling. He's hunting. 

"No Ani, what is it?" 

He takes a few steps backwards and wraps his hand in hers, senses expanding to pinpoint what he felt. 

_death-darkness-malice-power_

She inhales sharply, tugging on Anakin's hand. Shmi knows what a predator feels like when its seeking its target, she raised one. She needed to get Anakin ready for the race and get the Jedi off-world. 

That _thing_ is after them. 


	3. teeth

Obi-Wan has done his best to keep his calm, but if he’s being completely honest, he’s at his wits end.

_“Why do I sense that we’ve picked up another pathetic life form?”_

_“It’s the boy responsible for these parts.”_

Obi-Wan isn’t completely irrational, despite what his childhood evaluations might say about him, but the tone of his Master’s voice makes him anxious. Qui-Gon hadn’t specified who the midi-chlorian count was for but he’s smart enough to put two and two together.

_He never wanted you in the first place, he’s going to leave you for someone better, someone stronger-_

He shakes the thoughts off and releases his feelings into the Force. Now is not the time to dwell on what could be. He must learn how to live in the present, it’s why he and Qui-Gon were paired together for in the first place. Some good it’s done him.

Obi-Wan knows he has a wild streak, but he’s _tamed_ it. It tended to jump out during the most inopportune times-

_Like when you decided you wanted to lead an army of children to their deaths at the tender age of thirteen._

-but he’s gotten a lot better at making sure it doesn’t come out at all. His ferocity has only led him down paths of suffering and loss, and he’ll fight against his true instincts until the day he dies if it means never having to go through such turmoil again. He even started to focus more on Soresu rather than his preferred and more aggressive Ataru variant of Jar’Kai.

Obi-Wan had just passed Captain Panaka a hydrospanner when he felt the Force twist and _scream_ around him. The ground shook violently as several enormous thunderclaps fired off in rapid succession and the crew on the bridge began to yell loudly, about-

_(star-bird screaming in utter rage, a dragon posturing its wings and snarling, a lion lashing its tail and flexing its claws-)_

- _something_ that had suddenly appeared in the dunes.

What in Sith Hells was going on out there?

Anakin runs as hard as he can. He doesn’t bother trying to downplay his abilities, sprinting past Qui-Gon as they make their way towards the ship. Partly because of the danger that’s rapidly reeling them in and partly because if he stops running, he’ll probably end up running straight back to his mother. The human side of him has been through a rollercoaster of emotions, from the elation of winning the Classic to the crushing fear and despair of saying goodbye to everything he’s ever known.

The side of him that marks him the son of Ar-Amu, however, has been on edge. Since early that morning he’s been well aware of the _death-darkness-malice-power_ that’s been circling Mos Espa. He hates the feeling of being hunted in his own territory. Children of the Desert do not fear off-worlders that could not last a day on Tatooine, but this thing’s presence had even managed to unsettle his mother.

_“Take heed, my child. For this creature will not be as easy to bring down as the things you hunt.”_

But when the _death-darkness-malice-power_ comes barreling down on them, he’s more than ready to face it. Qui-Gon ignites his lightsaber and tells him to get down, but Anakin rushes forward and lets his presence grow. He takes a mass of his _tentacles-claws-wings_ and swipes at the monster on the speeder-bike. It’s agile though and hops off before the bike goes up in flames. It ignites its saber in turn, a blood red to Qui-Gon’s calming green. It snarls and twirls the blade, trying to cow Anakin into submission.

But Anakin is the vengeful demon that roams the desert plains, and he _roars._ The ground trembles violently as the sky darkens and flashes. Tatooine’s son is furious and looking for blood. How dare this insignificant _spec_ threaten what is rightfully his in his own home?

The red and black creature doesn’t take the hint and launches himself at Anakin anyways. He smirks bouncing on his toes because this is going to be the hunt of his _life-_

-and then Qui Gon flips over him and locks blades with the creature, the first in series of deadly exchanges.

“Go Ani, tell them to take off!”

He looks back at the ship, torn between jumping in the fray and ripping out the creature’s heart himself, or going to warn the others. After a split second he growls and sprints back towards the ship, realizing that in the miniscule chance the creature managed to get past him, everyone on the ship would be dead.

“Kill-stealer.” He mutters as he climbs onto the ship.

Anakin scans the ship and finds that Padme is in the engine room with one other person and the _light-energy-power_ he sensed before. He pulls back on his presence as he bursts into the engine room, playing the part of a terrified boy. “Qui-Gon is in trouble and he says to take off now!”

“Who are you?” One of the men asks.

“He’s a friend,” Padmé says. “We need to get to the bridge now!”

The group of four rush to the bridge and through the viewport they spot the flashing of blades and kick up of sand in the landscape.

“Over there, fly low.” The _light-energy-power_ orders to the pilot.

The ship takes off and hovers briefly over Qui-Gon’s location before rocketing off. As soon as the door closes, Anakin rushes down to hallway where Qui-Gon had landed. He spots the Jedi Knight in a heap on the floor, panting heavily and covered in dirt.

“Are you alright?”

“I think so.” Qui-Gon responds, his _astonishment-anxiety-bewilderment_ leaking into the air.

“What was it?” The _light-power-energy_ ,who probably is a Jedi as well, inquired.

“I don't know, but he was well trained in the Jedi arts. My guess is he was after the Queen.”

Anakin thinks over the information, processing it in his head. Why would the creature circle Mos Espa for so long if it were attacking the Queen? The Queen was never there. It would make the most sense to attack the ship while Qui-Gon, Padme, and Jar-Jar were gone, and the crew was at its lowest number of members.

“Do you think he'll follow us?” It’s a rhetorical question he knows the answer to. That creature is a hunter, same as him. It’ll track them to the ends of the universe, especially after a failure of that magnitude.

“We'll be safe enough once we're in hyperspace, but I have no doubt he knows our destination.”

“What are we going to do about it?” Anakin doesn’t bother to keep the excitement out of his voice. He flexes his

_(mangled claws dripping black tar venom, covered in teeth-filled suckers-)_

-hands, attempting to dig his fingers into the metal hallway.

Qui-Gon looks between him and the other man by his side. “We will be patient. Anakin Skywalker, meet Obi-Wan Kenobi.”

_“Do you feel that my child? He doesn’t know it yet, but he’s yours.”_

Anakin grins widely-

_(human children have twenty teeth, adults have thirty-two, he should have any number between there, no more no less-)_

-and holds out his hand, shaking it with Obi-Wan. “You’re a Jedi too? Pleased to meet you.”

He fights to keep the violent surge of pleasure contained within him when the Jedi matches his smile and grips his hand tightly back, immediately sensing the same _otherness_ buried deep within Obi-Wan’s blood. Anakin will bring it out of him. Ar-Amu commands it.

Obi-Wan is underwhelmed by Anakin. This was the boy that was supposed to have a midi-chlorian count that was higher than Grandmaster Yoda’s? Anakin’s adorable with his wide eyes and bright smile at what Obi-Wan thinks are some of the simplest things in the galaxy, but adorableness does not equal talent in the Force despite his connection with the boy. He voices his concern with his Master when he’s checking up on him after his duel with the darksider.

“Are you sure the device didn’t malfunction somehow? Possibly causing a faulty reading?”

His Master fixes him a disbelieving look, from where he’s sitting. “I’ve never seen or felt anything like it, Obi-Wan. You did not feel it in the Force?”

Obi-Wan blinks, eyebrows raising. “That was Anakin? But how- “

Qui-Gon shakes his head. “I do not know. The way he wields the Force with such ease and power, is _otherworldly_. I suspect he was born from the Force itself. Shmi said there was no father involved with Anakin’s conception.”

“No, that’s impossible. The life of a slave is a brutal one, maybe she was just protecting Anakin from the truth.”

Qui-Gon looks directly into Obi-Wan’s eyes, speaking slowly as if he couldn’t believe what he was saying either. “I felt her in the Force, Padawan. She did not lie. What I saw Anakin do, what I saw him become…” He paused, trying to gather his thoughts, his utter astonishment leaking into the Force. “…it was not _natural_.”

Anakin had concluded that as much as he likes being amongst the stars, the temperature was a little too low for his taste. He knows he runs-

_(hotter than the temperature of Tatooine’s suns combined, he cut himself once and his blood melted steel-)_

-hotter than most, being from a desert planet but how could anything stand this? He’s so deep in his inner monologue of complaints that he doesn’t notice Padmé come in.

She’s got a concerned look to her face and energy as she studies Anakin. “Are you all right?”

“It's very cold.”

She crouches down and shrugs off her coat as she wraps it around Anakin, smiling softly. “You're from a warm planet, Ani, too warm for my taste. Space is cold.”

Anakin doesn’t mean too, but his senses are so off from the displacement. Everything smells of starlight and metal and he’s desperate to try and zero in on something else. It’s way too easy to pick up Padme’s emotion in her scent, in both the physical and metaphysical term of the word. “You seem sad.”

Padmé’s eyes flicker from the floor to Anakin’s eyes. “The Queen is...worried. Her people are suffering...dying. She must convince the Senate to intervene, or I'm not sure what will happen.”

Anakin cocks his head studying her. Everything falls into place as he does the numbers in his head. He concentrates as he speaks into Padmé’s mind, putting all his energy into speaking with only one voice.

_“You’re the Queen, aren’t you?”_

Her eyes widen as she goes to respond, but he stops her before she can get the words out.

_“I won’t tell anyone. Its just, Qui-Gon said that the hunter was after the Queen but you two were the only ones that were in Mos Espa and it followed us from there. You hide it well, but not well enough. At least not to someone who’s spent their life hiding from Depur.”_

She blinks several times, letting out a breath. “You’re quite perceptive.”

He shrugs, “I have to be. But if you ever want lessons on how to hide the right way, I’ve done it my whole life. I’d be happy to help you.”

She smiles, giving him a quick hug. “I might take you up on that offer.”

Padmé bids him goodnight and Anakin decide to head up to the bridge to see if it's any warmer up there.

_Warm air rises and starshine will heat me up. It has to be hotter up there._

The door opens to the bridge and he locks eyes with a startled Obi-Wan.

“Anakin, I didn’t even sense you coming. Why are you awake?” The Jedi admonishes.

Whoops, he must of hid himself a little _too_ well in Ar-Amu’s spirit. At least he gets to spend time with Obi-Wan though. “It’s a little cold for me. Why are you awake?”

He sits back down in one of the seats near the transparasteel. “This situation we’re in, its…unsettling.”

Anakin plops down in the seat next to him. “What part?”

He hesitated before speaking. “The man Qui-Gon battled, one of his kind has not been seen in a long time. Well over a thousand years.”

Anakin scoffs, leaning back in his seat. “We won’t have to worry about him for much longer,” He says with all the ease of a predator of his caliber. The creature has already gotten away from him once and he wasn’t going to let it happen again. “I’ll take care of him.”

Obi-Wan glances in his direction, clearly unsettled. Did he say something wrong? He didn’t want to upset him.

“Anakin…” Obi-Wan says slowly. “…have you _taken care_ of other things before?”

What kind of question was that?

“Of course I have.” From bantha herds, to kyrat dragons, both the greater and canyon species, to off-worlders and bounty hunters that think they can get away with violating slaves _(his family)_ without consequences. Anakin can’t think of a creature on Tatooine he hasn’t hunted down.

“Is that not normal?” He blinks up owlishly at Obi-Wan. How he kills them is definitely not normal-

_(crushing skulls with an unseen power, slicing through organs with ever-shifting talons down to the bone-)_

-but killing is a part of growing up on Tatooine. He was always allowed to talk about his hunts with the other slaves, his mother even encouraged it. His kills were his badges of endurance, what made him a true Child of the Desert.

Obi-Wan breathes out slowly, deep in thought. “Not for me, no, but you grew up in a very different world than I did.”

“Huh. I thought you would understand since you’re kinda like me.”

Obi-Wan whips his head around violently, eyes widening. He doesn’t say anything for some time before he speaks softly, almost to himself. “Perhaps…a very long time ago.”

_sadness-fear-longing-disgust_

Aw _poodoo_ , that was not what he was going for. He shifts in his seat trying to find a safer topic of conversation. “Can you tell me about that?” He points to the hilt at Obi-Wan’s belt.

Obi-Wan perks up a bit and unclips the weapon. “It’s called a lightsaber. It’s powered by a kyber crystal. Some legends even say it can phase through different realities and cut through things we cannot see with the naked eye. Do you want to hold it?”

He hands the saber to Anakin and lets him weight it in his hand. “Wizard! Do you think I can get one?”

“Maybe...what else do you want to know about it?”

Anakin grins and sits up straighter. He spends the rest of the night badgering Obi-Wan about his lightsaber while the Jedi diligently answers, with Ar-Amu singing in his ears. This is where he knows he’s supposed to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> straight up i did not expect the amount of response i've gotten on this story so far, its been like four days lmaoo so thanks everyone!  
> im trying to find that balance between anakin's human nine year old boy side and his older than the universe itself side, and its hard tbh. like really hard. i wanted to do the phantom menace in all one chapter but i just don't have the attention span so im gonna break it into two and then there'll be a time jump. no idea how much but once this thing reaches clone wars era it'll slow down. 
> 
> the child army thing obi-wan is talking about is a reference to melida/daan, it'll come into play later.


	4. angel on fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> remember when i said the phantom menace was only gonna be two chapters? yeah that was a fuckin lie

Coruscant is _loud_. The biggest city he’s seen is Mos Espa but on Coruscant the entire planet is one huge city. He presses up against the transparisteel, reaching out with senses and finds-

_(a mother consoling her child over a broken toy, a group of teens racing speeders through the lower levels, a weakling off-worlder half dead and attempting to crawl to safety, it’s bleeding heavily and if Anakin can just get to level 1145, he could finish it off before its heart stops completely-)_

-a lot of life and light spread out across the planet.

_(it would be so easy to take his wings-fangs-limbs and just swallow them all whole, to reach out and watch the streets bleed as the sky burns above him-)_

He backs up and presses his hand against his stomach. He might be just a tad hungry. An arm wraps around his shoulders and Anakin is proud to admit he already figured out how to identify _his_ Jedi by touch and presence alone. He leans into Obi-Wan’s side and glances up at him, grinning happily.

Obi-Wan eyebrows furrow a bit as he looks down at Anakin, but his expression evens out and he smiles brightly back.

_E chu ta! Did I show fang?_

Anakin runs his tongue over his teeth and finds that they are _much_ sharper and _wayyy_ longer than what human teeth should be. His mouth seems wider and there are definitely more than thirty-two teeth in his mouth. Triple that to be exact. He concentrates on his jaws and he feels them shift back into place. He’s embarrassed that he let his excitement make him slip so easily, (his mother would be cuffing the back of his ears if she were here), but it’s quickly overridden by the delight at Obi-Wan’s reaction to his slip up.

_“I told you my son, he’s **yours** and you are **his**. He is accepting his place at your side and what lies inside him. You have nothing to fear.” _

Obi-Wan gives him a light squeeze. “First thoughts?”

Coruscant is beautiful and the number of vehicles flying through the sky is making his fingers itch in anticipation to learn them all, but it’s so _controlled._ Anakin is used to the wildness and chaos of Tatooine and Coruscant has none of that. The city is vast but not in the same way his home world is. In the desert he could run for miles and miles, preying on whatever moved across the landscape but here everything is so disconnected and mechanical. There is a balance to Tatooine’s brutality, but here there is no balance at all.

But he feels Obi-Wan’s _happiness-contentment-safety_ flowing off him and Anakin realizes he’ll have to make do with what he’s given. He’s been in worse situations. He’ll do it for Obi-Wan. “I like it. It’s your home, so it’s mine too now.” 

Warmth blooms in his chest as the feedback of Obi-Wan’s emotions loop through him. Anakin stays firmly pressed against his Jedi’s side until they land. 

Patience is a trait that Obi-Wan has made progress in learning, but he is by no means a master of it. It takes most of his concentration to not fidget like a hyperactive youngling as he and Qui-Gon wait for the results of the Council’s tests on Anakin.

“Do you really believe that the Council will allow Anakin to be trained? He’s talented but quite old.”

Qui-Gon huffs out a short laugh from where he’s standing. “Talented is quite the understatement, my young apprentice. Anakin will become a Jedi, I assure you.” Qui-Gon eyes him, looking him up and down, his tone teasing. “You’ve grown quite fond of the boy. Having second thoughts about his status as a pathetic life form?”

Obi-Wan couldn’t help the half smile that forms on his face. “Perhaps I was too quick to judge.” His voice sobers at the thought of Anakin being rejected from the Order. “My worry now is what will happen to him if he is not accepted. It could be detrimental for someone of his potential.”

_Anakin will not become another Xanatos. Qui-Gon and I will not allow it to happen._

Qui-Gon sighs heavily, crossing his arms. “We will face that problem if it arises.”

The rational part of Obi-Wan realizes that he should not be so attached to a boy he met only a week ago, but it feels so _right_ in the Force. In the several days he’s known Anakin, they’ve been practically attached to the hip despite Qui-Gon being the one that freed him. If anything, he expected Anakin to be attached to Qui-Gon, not him.

Obi-Wan glances towards the door, trying to feel Anakin in the Force. He can clearly sense the twelve councilors presences’ but it’s as if Anakin isn’t currently on this _plane of existence_. If the door to the council chambers opened and the members inside claimed the boy vanished into thin air, he wouldn’t find it hard to believe.

“Master,” He begins slowly, “What exactly did you see Anakin do on Tatooine?”

Qui-Gon is silent for a few moments before he speaks. “What I saw…Obi-Wan, it was indescribable.” He breathes out. “It was as if he could bend the entire _planet_ to his will.” He pauses again, eyes rapidly shifting back and forth, clearly coming to terms with something of great magnitude. “Padawan, he thought he could take on the Sith Lord by himself.”

Qui-Gon stares at him with a bantha-in-headlights expression. “Had I not stepped in; I believe he would have _won_.”

A chiming from Qui-Gon’s commlink causes them both to startle. Master Windu’s distorted voice drones out. “We’ve reached a preliminary decision on Skywalker. You may enter.”

They push through the doors and Obi-Wan takes a few seconds to ponder his Master’s allegations. An untrained boy of nine able to defeat a Sith Lord? Qui-Gon was among the best duelists of the Order and even he had trouble keeping up with the assassin. Anakin didn’t even have a lightsaber.

He thinks back to when they were still on Tatooine. How he felt like the Force was _enraged_ , so turbulent that he couldn’t tell which way was up and which way was down. The way it stopped when Anakin appeared in the hallway, seemingly terrified about the monster outside. He thinks about Anakin on the bridge of the J-type, how that terror was replaced by a cool indifference and subtle, refined, fury. How he looked like-

_(he was glowing under the light of hyperspace, his skin absorbing the blue-white light like it was heating up his blood, eyes burning like mini supernovas and in the corner of his eye he swore he saw several sets of wings-)_

-he could take on a small army and come out the other side unharmed. As ridiculous as his Master’s theory may sound, Obi-Wan thinks Anakin could take on the Sith Lord and then some.

“No?!?”

Obi-Wan snaps to attention at his Master’s outburst.

“He is too old.” Master Windu says plainly. “There is already too much anger in him.”

Obi-Wan shares a quick look with his Master, eyes widening.

_“What now?”_

Qui-Gon steps forward some, a hint of indignation slipping into his voice. “He is the Chosen One. You must see it?”

Master Yoda shakes his head slightly. “Clouded, this boy's future is. Masked, by his youth.”

Qui-Gon takes a breath and squares his shoulders. “I will train him, then. I take Anakin as my Padawan learner.”

Something in Obi-Wan erupts deep in his chest and he refrains from letting it slip across his bond with Qui-Gon. Anakin turns around sharply, meeting Obi-Wan’s gaze but he’s not focused on the boy.

_Where did I go wrong, why wasn’t I enough, I tried so hard, he was going to leave all along, I knew it, I knew it, I knew it-_

Distantly, he feels the Council’s shock wash up against his shields. “An apprentice, you have, Qui-Gon. Impossible, to take on a second.” Master Yoda reprimands.

“We forbid it.”

Anakin scoffs and fourteen disbelieving pairs of eyes turn to look at him. He crosses his arms, one eyebrow raised with an almost bored look on his face. “Are you serious right now? Can’t you hear it?”

Qui-Gon starts, “Anakin-“ but he’s cut off by the child.

“ _Listen.”_

Anakin looks at each of them, fixing them with a gaze so intense that Obi-Wan fights the urge to squirm away. Anakin rolls his shoulders ever so slightly and his miniscule presence in the Force becomes _monumental_ , so large it feels like he’s going to burst out of room—like he’s revealing what a true child of the Force should feel like.

He speaks-

_(with multiple voices intertwined with his own, hundreds, thousands, millions-)_

-slowly, like he was explaining a common fact that they couldn’t wrap their heads around.

“Ar-Amu, _the Force_ , it wants me here.”

The councilors exchange looks with each other and steadied, reaching out into the Force and-

**_TAKE HIM TAKE HIM TAKE HIM THEY ARE MY CHOSEN CHILDREN CUT OUT THE DEATH MALICE DECAY THEY SEEK THE MAW YOU ARE BLIND YOU MUST EVOLVE LISTEN LISTEN LISTEN-_ **

-a quasar erupted in front of them.

Obi-Wan watched in shock as rivers of blood began to flow from the Councilors eyes and ears, each member wiping at themselves frantically. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon remained unscathed. Anakin stepped back to Obi-Wan and gripped his hand tightly.

“So, can I stay?”

Master Yaddle harrumphed, her signature in the Force practically screaming “told you so I did, _fucking idiots_ ’ and swiped Master Yoda’s commlink from his chair. She smiled gently at Anakin and politely asked what color and style of robes he would prefer so she could place the requisition. 

Obi-Wan had never laughed harder in his entire life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i didn't think i would pull from legends as much as i am but here i am. also once school starts back up, my updates will slow down i just have nothing to do right now lmao.


	5. bad dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> anakin: look obi-wan i can fit the entire galaxy in my hands, wanna see!?  
> obi-wan: uhhh sure go ahead  
> *anakin cups obi-wan's face*  
> anakin, proudly: i did it  
> obi-wan, holding back tears: that's wonderful darling

For the second time that week, Anakin found himself hurtling through hyperspace in the J-Type. Master Yaddle had thoughtfully provided a jacket with his new clothes, understanding what sudden temperature changes could do to the body.

_“For a century, trapped I was, on a jungle planet. Some time it took me, to reacclimate to Coruscant’s environment.”_

It helped massively against the chill of space and he didn’t have to go running for the bridge every time he got too cold. Anakin had not, however, expressed his more explicit dietary needs. He hadn’t had a proper meal in seven standard days. He could get by on normal food, but it wasn’t ideal.

Anakin _loved_ hunting but he didn’t do it just because he liked to kill things. From what he could gather from Ar-Amu, he needed the physical aspect of his meals as much as he needed the metaphysical part. He needed the life-force _and_ the flesh and blood of his prey. Dead meat was pretty much junk. 

His stomach twisted painfully, and Anakin sighed, throwing the blankets off his body. He slipped on his shoes and crept out of his quarters, sinking into the Force to see if there was anything (he’d even take a womprat at this point) available to eat. His vison goes-

_(technicolor, looking with thousands of eyes through thousands of planes, his senses expanding, he can smell the life on passing planets and moons, if he’s quick enough he could go for small slaughter and be back on the ship in no time-)_

-clear in the Force and after a quick scan he finds that they only life forms on the starship are the crew, the Queen and her Handmaidens, and the Jedi. He snarls softly in annoyance, and trudges to the galley anyways. He finds Jar-Jar passed out on a table in the corner and Artoo in the corner opposite to him when he arrives. The droid whistles a low greeting, an undercurrent of tiredness in his tone.

“Hi Artoo,” He whispers softly, waving a bit. “Shouldn’t you be in sleep mode?”

If droids could roll their eyes, Artoo would. The droid explains that he’s been tasked with monitoring the Gungan for the remainder of the trip—to make sure he doesn’t break anything else of value. It’s a trying job.

Anakin giggles quietly, patting the droid’s head. “I can watch him for a bit, you get some rest. I’ll wake you when I leave.”

Artoo beeps happily and quickly powers down, his lights going dim. With everyone now fast asleep, Anakin can get back to feeding himself. He rummages around until he finds a large slab of nef ribs. They’re pretty fresh so he plops down, feeling proud of his scavenging skills and he begins to tuck in. If anyone were to look at him now, they would see-

_(a being with a too-wide mouth split to the ears, filled with fangs and a lolling, forked tongue, ever-shifting eyes that seem to be stuck between blinding white and vantablack void, elongated limbs tipped with three-inch claws-)_

-an objectively disturbing sight. He’s about halfway done when Jar-Jar suddenly stirs and wakes, roused by something.

_“His kind are prey, my son. There is always a bigger fish on Naboo. The smell of blood woke him.”_

Jar-Jar’s fear leaks into the room and he starts to panic, flailing wildly, his instincts telling him that he was going to end up in Anakin’s jaws next. Anakin growls loudly, eyes flashing, and he commands the Gungan to _forget._ Jar-Jar’s body goes slack, and he slams headfirst into the table, the sound echoing throughout the ship. Anakin cringes, looking around to see if anyone would come investigate the noise. Luckily for him everyone is too deep in sleep or too done with Jar-Jar’s antics to inquire what caused the noise and he’s able to finish his meal in peace.

He wakes up Artoo, the droid thanking him, and he heads off to get some rest of his own. He’s walking down the corridor to his quarters when he feels _anger-hurt-despair_ slam into him, physically stumbling him. He turns and tracks the source of it to Obi-Wan’s room.

Obi-Wan thought he had a handle on his shields until Anakin hesitantly pushes open his door, shuffling his feet in the doorway, his worry clear in the Force.

“Are you ok?”

Obi-Wan can’t help the flash of warmth that echoes through his body. It was easy to forget how deadly Anakin was capable of being when he’s acting like this. He sits up to meet his gaze. “I’m fine, Anakin. I apologize for waking you.”

The boy clearly isn’t satisfied with his answer and he huffs, stepping into his room and clambering onto his bed, struggling with the height of it. Obi-Wan waves a hand, dim lights coming on as Anakin speaks. “I _felt_ it Obi-Wan.”

How can he explain his insecurities and inadequacies to a nine-year-old boy? Especially when his being there was the reason for them flaring up in the first place?

He takes too long to respond because Anakin continues, wringing his hands nervously, looking down into the sheets. “It’s just…back home whenever someone feels like that, its always bad. They just stop _moving_ and then _Depur_ comes to try and get them to move again and they hurt them, but they just _won’t_ and then they fade away,” He blinks up at Obi-Wan, blue eyes shining with tears. “I don’t want you to go. You _can’t_. I won’t let it happen! I just found you!”

Oh dear _Force_ , what has this poor child been through?

Obi-Wan wraps him in his arms, projecting _calm-soothing-reassurance_ in the Force. “I’m not going anywhere dearheart, I assure you. I was just thinking about some things Master Qui-Gon said and-”

Anakin goes deathly still in his arms, pulling back and staring him in the eyes. His voice is distorted and accompanied by several others when he speaks, and his eyes flash white when the light catches them. “-Master Qui-Gon made you feel like this?” Anakin bares his teeth, snapping them a bit. “ ** _Tell me how he hurt you._** ”

He wraps his hands around Obi-Wan’s and _dives,_ digging deep into Obi-Wan’s mind, haphazardly searching through every memory where Obi-Wan’s _anger-hurt-despair-unworthiness_ was present, tearing through his shields like they were nothing more than paper.

_“You must learn how to handle my son, child. He belongs to you as much as you belong to him. He must learn boundaries, or he will swallow the galaxy whole. Tell him **no.**_ ”

****

**_“ANAKIN ENOUGH!”_ **

Anakin halts immediately in his assault and pulls out of Obi-Wan’s mind, rebuilding his shields as easily as he tore them down.

“I’m sorry. I-I didn’t see much, I swear! Did I hurt you? I think I fixed it, I’m sorry!” Anakin stammers out, his shame slowly leaking into the room. His shadow morphs between forms on the wall behind him each one more horrifying than the next. “I know I should have more control but it’s so _hard_ and I just get carried away sometimes—”

Obi-Wan tugs him into his arms, quieting him. “It’s alright Anakin, I know you didn’t mean to.”

For the first time since Tatooine, Obi-Wan is starting to come to terms with the enormity of the task that the Force has laid out for him. The task of caring for its chosen son and ensuring he doesn’t burn to brightly and destroy himself, along with the rest of the galaxy.

“You didn’t deserve any of that, Obi-Wan.” Anakin’s muffled voice says from where he’s buried in Obi-Wan’s front.

This time it’s his turn to freeze in shock.

“I’m glad you think that, dear one. Unfortunately, that doesn’t mean you can force _everyone_ to think that as well.”

Anakin looks up at him, his blue eyes flashing indignantly. “Why not?”

In that moment, Obi-Wan realizes that the boy probably has a very vague or completely no idea of limits. He knows how to hide and deflect when he’s in the presence of people he doesn’t trust, but other than that if he wants to do something, he’ll do it. There isn’t _anything_ that could match his power, let alone contain it.

_“That’s why he needs you, child of mine. The attachments the Jedi preach against are the only things stopping him from remaking the galaxy in his image. His limits are his attachments.”_

“Just because you have the ability to influence everyone’s choice, does not mean you should. Especially over such small matters.” He explains gently.

Anakin blinks a few times, slowly going over the information. He looks up at Obi-Wan. “I just want you to be happy. Like my mom did for me. They don’t get to hate you for being different.”

Obi-Wan’s heart stutters at the admission and pure love flowing off Anakin. He tries to collect himself as best as he can. “And I thank you for that Anakin, but everyone is allowed to have their own opinion.”

Anakin cocks his head in that not quite human way of his before relaxing. “Fine. If it makes you happy, I’ll not do anything about it.” He grumbles out.

Obi-Wan stifles a sigh of relief. He’s expecting Anakin to scamper off to his own quarters but instead he shuffles over to the other side of Obi-Wan and begins to bury himself in Obi-Wan’s blankets.

“It’s warmer here.” Anakin says as he picks up on Obi-Wan’s confusion. “Goodnight Obi-Wan.”

He stops shuffling and stills, falling silent almost immediately. Obi-Wan sighs, wondering how and why he got chosen for this fiercely affectionate, monster of a child and prepares for sleep himself. He turns out the lights and begins to drift, picking up the whisperings of the Force in his subconscious.

_“You have endured many hardships and will endure many more, Negotiator. Ekkreth is my gift to you. He is the doorway that will lead you to your true abilities.”_

Obi-Wan nearly bolts up out of bed. His gift? He checks his shields that Anakin had hastily repaired and found them to be so much _stronger_ than what they should be. Like Anakin had taken a part of _his_ essence and woven it into Obi-Wan’s.

_Oh, I’m so fucked._

Anakin huffs as he dodges a stray blaster bolt. He doesn’t get why he’s supposed to sit and stay here, there’s a whole battle going on that he should be helping with!

After they landed on Naboo, (he had never seen so much green or water in one place before) they managed to negotiate with the Gungans. Padmé revealed herself as the Queen to everyone’s surprise but his and they came up with a plan to capture the Viceroy and take back Naboo.

He’s observing the fight from the cockpit of a grounded fighter when he feels _darkness-malice-anger-power_ from behind the hanger doors. He stands, telling Qui-Gon to wait for him but the Jedi cuts him off, telling him to stay back.

The doors open and the Sith Lord is standing there with both blades of his lightsaber ignited.

Forget the droids and their lifeless husks, he wants to bleed the Sith Lord _dry_ and hang his head outside his mother’s front door.

He bares and teeth and-

_(a seraph is replaced in his image, proud and deadly, his mother always said that angels were warriors with one wing dipped in blood and he’s been soaking in it since he was a child-)_

-postures himself, already climbing out of the cockpit. Padmé’s group splits off from the two Jedi, leaving them to handle the Sith Lord. He’s halfway out when Artoo lets out a shrill warning and three destroyer droids roll into the hangar, instantly firing on them. He ducks back down and begins to search for a way to fire back. He manages to shoot them all down but, in his haste, he activated the autopilot on the fighter.

He watches helplessly as it rockets out of the hangar, leaving Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon to face off with the creature alone.

Artoo lets out a string of concerned whirs, telling him they were heading straight for the droid control ship. 

_"You'll need to destroy the ship if the planet is to be saved, my son."_

As much as Anakin wants to go back to the hangar, he knows that Obi-Wan would want him to put the planet before himself. And he's already out of atmo anyways, there's a good chance the fight would be over by the time he got back. Anakin sighs, ignoring the instincts screaming _protect-mine-protect-kill_ , and pulls down the fighter's helmet, starting to familiarize himself with the controls. "Artoo, take us off autopilot, we're going to take out the control ship." 

_Sith Lords shouldn’t be able to fight this well if they’ve been extinct for a thousand years._

Obi-Wan picks himself back up and races towards where his Master and the Sith Lord are battling but he’s cut off by a set of ray shields going off. Qui-Gon and the Sith Lord are also split from each other ahead of him. Qui-Gon falls into a quick meditation while the Sith paces back and forth like a hunting loth-wolf, testing the defenses of the shield with his saber.

A rush of cold fear washes over him as he realizes that the Sith and _Anakin_ have strangely the same behavior, the same cold, detached look in their eyes when looking upon their enemies, the same righteous fury and bloodlust echoing through the Force. He sees a vision of a grown Anakin, the epitome of lethal grace, pacing in front of him with an ignited saber and burning gold eyes.

_No-_

He’ll cut down the Sith and end this here.

The shields open and he sprints towards the end, his Master and the Sith already locked in combat. The shields close once again, and he’s stuck only one barrier away. Qui-Gon is holding his own and if he’s correct, the shields will open in a few seconds and they’ll be able to finish the Zabrak off. But Qui-Gon leaves himself open and the Sith takes it, slamming the hilt of his saber into Qui-Gon’s face, stunning him, and runs him through.

He screams as the bond between the two of them is abruptly _ripped_ away, leaving a gaping hole where it should be. Obi-Wan feels red tint his vision, bouncing on his feet impatiently.

Qui-Gon said that Anakin would’ve beat the Sith if he let him fight him on Tatooine. Perhaps he should try that. Beat the monster at its own game. The teachings of the Jedi fall away as the shield opens. He doesn’t care what it takes. He’s going to kill the Sith. Even it means fighting with the ferocity he swore off.

He falls into Ataru like an old friend, attacking swiftly and viciously. The Sith is surprised, Obi-Wan was using Soresu before and it worked to his advantage, catching the Sith off guard with the form change. The Zabrak leaves himself open after a parry and Obi-Wan takes it, slicing his saber in two. The exchange a few more blows before Obi-Wan’s eagerness causes him to miss a block to a Force push and he falls into the pit, his lightsaber tumbling below him.

The creature stands over him, gloating, and Obi-Wan _reaches_ with a power he didn’t know he had and suddenly he’s back on the platform slicing the Zabrak in half. He watches as the Sith falls in shock, looking as if he was _disturbed_ at the sight he was seeing above him. Obi-Wan looks down at the blade that he had summoned to defeat the Sith and finds that it wasn’t the green he was expecting.

In his hand was the other half of the crimson saber of the Sith.

He hears Qui-Gon gasp and he disengages the blade, rushing to his side. He cradles Qui-Gon as best as he can, trying to get him up.

“It is too late...It's...”

“No!” Obi-Wan cries vehemently, tears streaming down his face as he wills the Force to not take his Master from him.

Qui-Gon weakly reaches up to wipe the tears from his face. “I am proud of you Obi-Wan. Promise...promise me you'll train the boy.”

He nods his head frantically. “Yes, Master...I will.”

Qui-Gon’s eyes lose focus as he speaks, his body growing limp and his voice quieter. “He is the Chosen One...he will...bring balance...train him!”

The last thread connecting him and Qui-Gon burns. Obi-Wan presses his head into the body of his Master’s, and begins to sob.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> all my chapter names are actually song titles from my anakin skywalker playlist if anyone was wondering.


	6. a sith's interlude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> quick little chapter (like miniscule) bc school is starting back up & idk when im gonna be able to update again 
> 
> say hi to me on tumblr if you'd like!  
> https://www.tumblr.com/blog/stormsirxn

Darth Sidious gazed across the Coruscanti skyline from his office. Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic. His planning had paid off. His thoughts wandered to the boy responsible for taking out the main control ship.

Anakin Skywalker. A newly freed slave boy believed to the Chosen One of prophecy. Sidious is no fool, he knows that the boy holds an extraordinary amount of power. Maul was quite descriptive in his recounting of the events that happened on Tatooine.

_“He was ever-changing and so bright in the Force; I could not tell where he began and where the Force ended. The planet seemed to bend to his will with the slightest thought. He was not a boy; **he is not a boy**. I saw the corpses of the Ronto picked clean near his home. His skulls of the Massiff on the edges of his territory. Several packs of them, all piled into corners. When I came upon him with the Jedi, he was unfazed, he merely acted if I was to be added to his piles of bones. Master, he is **monstrous**.” _

And yet, Maul was bested by Padawan Kenobi. He’ll have to keep an eye on the newly knighted Jedi.

But Maul’s observations peaked Sidious’ curiosity. With his newfound power of Supreme Chancellor, it didn’t take much effort to find out that Anakin’s life day coincided with the Great Flood of Tatooine—the day where the desert planet managed to _freeze over_. It was also extremely easy to access Anakin’s medical records.

_Mother: Shmi Skywalker_

_Father: N/A_

_Midi-Chlorian Count: 20,000+_

_Species: Near-Human_

_Note: Base genome is found in humanoid species, however, Skywalker’s DNA is able to reform and reshape itself. This phenomenon is something I have never seen before; further testing will be pushed for._

Sidious smirked, letting his power roll across the room for a moment. Maul was quite the assassin, as well as talented in the Force. But Maul was no Skywalker. The child was an accomplished killer at the age of nine, with a midi-chlorian count higher than that of the Grandmaster of the Jedi Order.

With the Jedi guarding him so carefully, it would be a challenge to get to him. But not impossible. It would take some time, but Sidious has plenty of it. He was no stranger to playing the waiting game. With the Son of the Force at his side, he would be in control of the most powerful weapon in the galaxy. The Jedi will fall, and he would be left the untouchable ruler of an Eternal Galactic Empire.

And in the rare instance that Skywalker would not turn, there is another he could turn to.

From what he could tell, the Beloved Queen of the Stars was more than ready to unleash her chaos on the galaxy.

And he's finally found her prison. 


	7. ghosts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i wrote this in like three hours to escape the reality of america falling apart. enjoy some fluff & stay safe out there

_There’s blood. There’s blood everywhere. It’s a killing field. There’s something seeping into his arms, staining his clothes. He finds glassy eyes staring back at him. Cerasi._

_Hundreds of voices are screaming his name, yet they all echo as one. He shouldn’t be able to tell them apart, but he can. He can’t breathe. His lungs ache. His mouth is chalky and there’s the ever-present sound of buzzing in his ears._

_“Kenobi…”_

_A flirtatious snarl._

_“Kenobi.”_

_A mocking challenge._

_“KENOBI!”_

_An animalistic roar._

**_“KENOBI”_ **

****

****

Obi-Wan heaves in a quick breath and opens his eyes. He glances around, relief seeping into his bones when he finds he’s in the bedroom of his apartment at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. The soft neon lights streaming through the cracks in his blinds and distant hum of speeders assure him of that.

_Dreams pass in time; dreams pass in time…_

He’s got a sneaking suspicion that at least a part of his dream held some truth to it. A soft sigh from the other side of him catches his attention. Anakin. His padawan had not woken in Obi-Wan’s commotion and was still sleeping soundly beside him. Force knows he needed the rest.

In the six years since Naboo, Anakin never really left Obi-Wan’s bed. At first it was a combination of Obi-Wan’s grief and Anakin’s fear of abandonment that caused him to stay. Anakin also suffered from terrible nightmares, so it made more sense for him to stay in close proximity so Obi-Wan could calm him down in the aftermath of them. As he grew older, his padawan began to spend the night in his own room (where he could not hog the blankets from him) but three out of the five nights in a standard week, Anakin would still sleep in Obi-Wan's room.

Obi-Wan _knows_ that he’s spoiling him rotten, but he’d rather deal with a bratty padawan than a traumatized eldritch horror. Especially since now a days Anakin’s temperament seemed to oscillate so violently. Was puberty in half-Force children worse? Do they even go through puberty?

Sighing softly to himself, Obi-Wan carefully tiptoes out of bed and begins to slip on his robes. If he can’t get any sleep, he might as well be productive. A quick look at the chrono reveals that it was 0300. At this hour, there shouldn’t be anyone up wandering in the Archives to question why he’s looking through old battle strategies and war tactics.

When he arrives, he absentmindedly picks out a few journals and settles down in a quiet corner to read. He doesn’t get more than an hour of peace before there’s a stabbing panicky feeling coming from Anakin’s side of their bond, inquiring to where he is. Well, inquiring is an understatement. It’s more like someone is banging several metal objects together while tooting an air horn going, _“OBI-WAN, I AM KINDLY ASKING WHERE THE FUCK YOU ARE!?! OBI-WAN??? OBI-WANNNNNN!!! NEVERMIND I FOUND YOU.”_ in the Force.

The oppressive noise stops and not five minutes later an extremely disgruntled Anakin Skywalker has appeared before him, wrapped tightly in his cloak and barefoot, squinting in the low light of the Library.

“You could have at least made the effort to put shoes on.”

Anakin bares his teeth as a response, his annoyance slipping through because, yes, those are definitely _fangs_ instead of normal human teeth _—_

“I can’t believe you made me sniff you out at four in the morning.” Anakin mutters before crashing headfirst into Obi-Wan’s side. The fifteen-year old ignores Obi-Wan’s grunts of discomfort as he shuffles around.

“I did not make you do anything; _Anakin watch your elbows!”_

He finally settles half-curled into Obi-Wan’s lap. “You shouldn’t have made me get up then.”

Obi-Wan shakes his head, attempting to go back to his reading. Unfortunately for him, he has a nosy padawan. Anakin gently tugs the book from his hands, Obi-Wan letting him do so because he’s learned to pick his battles wisely when dealing with the Son of the Force and opens one eye as he skims the journal over.

 _“The Battle of Malachor V?_ Seriously? This is what you got up over?”

Obi-Wan tugs the book back over and doesn’t bother to keep the exasperation out of his voice. “Yes, Anakin. Unlike you I have an appreciate for galactic history.”

Anakin huffs and shifts, turning into Obi-Wan’s front. “I can appreciate history plenty, just not this early.”

Obi-Wan raises an eyebrow. “You don’t have a problem staying up this late for your illegal street racing activities.”

“The adrenaline keeps me up.” Anakin deadpans, not bothering to look up at him.

His padawan yawns and quietens, his breathing evening out again. Obi-Wan takes the time to appreciate the stillness of the night and the reassuring weight of his apprentice beside him. In the soft blue glow of the Archives’ lighting, he can almost see—

_(-the glow of hyperspace dancing underneath Anakin’s skin, his wings dripping supernovas and unknown constellations, the sheer power radiating from his soul-)_

—a fraction of Anakin’s true form behind the layers and layers of shielding.

Despite his best efforts to keep Anakin’s more _otherworldly_ tendencies hidden from anyone outside the Council, a routine medical scan quickly shot that plan to hell. Of course, it was meant to be kept largely under wraps, but one person would tell another, and then another, and then it turned into most of the Temple muttering quiet barbs underneath their breath when Anakin and Obi-Wan passed them in the halls.

Anakin, for all his impulsivity and fiery nature, never minded when the criticism was turned on him. But when it came to Obi-Wan, Anakin had no problem playing into the rumors that surrounded him, flashing his eyes or claws with a ready ease. The only epithet Obi-Wan was associated with that Anakin didn’t have a problem with was the one he hated the most. Sith-Killer.

It was an expected title when you’re the first Jedi to slay a Sith in a thousand years, but it didn’t mean he had to like it.

Anakin assures him that on Tatooine it would be a well respected and well revered title, but in the Temple it just lead to hero worship or suspicions of his commitment to the Light Side of the Force. Despite this, Anakin will still puff up with pride when the title is mentioned. You can take the boy out of the desert but Anakin's heart will always belong to the sandstorms and chaos of Tatooine. 

_0520_

He supposed he should at least attempt to sleep before having to get up again. His leg was already halfway there due to Anakin’s weight. He gingerly slides out of the chair, leaving his cloak wrapped around Anakin so that his scent was still near, and the boy didn’t freak out and wake half the Temple in his search efforts. Obi-Wan places the books back in their proper spots before going to back to Anakin, gently shaking him awake.

His padawan blinks up at him with bleary eyes, clearly confused about where he was and what was going on. It’s funny how one of the deadliest beings in the galaxy was so _not_ a morning person.

“Come now dear heart, let’s go back to bed.”

Obi-Wan holds out a hand and Anakin takes it, using it to leverage himself back up. He makes it five steps out of the Archives before all his weight is leaning back on Obi-Wan, his head buried into the crook of Obi-Wan’s neck.

_Force, when did he get so tall?_

When they make it back to the apartment, Obi-Wan deposits Anakin gently on the bed before going to change back into his sleep clothes, as his padawan had not even bothered to put on his robes before leaving. He turns outs the remaining lights and slides into bed, shutting his eyes.

Anakin quickly latches himself to Obi-Wan’s side, radiating contentment, and he can feel Anakin’s—

_(-tentacles wrapped around him, weighty and possessive on his body, his wings cocooning them in an impenetrable embrace, if he looks closely, he can see stars in them, his dark claws curled across his stomach, easily capable of gutting him alive but Anakin’s only intention has been to protect what’s his-)_

—long limbs thrown over his body, trapping him from any further movement.

“Next time you have a nightmare,” Anakin groans out softly. “Can we just stay here and read the books we already have?”

The inkling in the Force that told him that his dream was more reality than fiction is also telling him that he’s got some time before it actually comes to fruition.

Obi-Wan chuckles, carding his fingers through Anakin’s hair. “Only because you asked so nicely, my young apprentice.”

He falls asleep to the whirring of speeders and Anakin’s soft snores.


	8. therefore i am

Breakfast goes well, the room filled with Obi-Wan and Anakin’s idle chat about past missions and upcoming assignments. The Force flows warmly around them, easy going and free, and the _happiness-security-love_ is ever present through his and Anakin’s bond.

His padawan’s eyes are bright, despite the dark circles beneath them. He’s brought it up with Anakin a few times, but he always waved it off, blaming nightmares and restless sleeping patterns. Anakin never got sick, his immune system fail proof and in the rare event something managed to harm him, he always healed within a few hours.

But lately the unnatural fluidity of Anakin’s movements has been jerky and stiff—too human for a being of his nature. Master Windu and Master Mundi had commented on it and commended Obi-Wan on finally managing to coach Anakin into acting like a “proper Jedi”, but he did no such thing. Anakin already had to mask his presence a ridiculous amount, little gods he forbid him to _walk_ normally.

His padawan in question finishes scooping the last of his food into his mouth, preparing to get up and leave.

Obi-Wan raises his eyebrows questioningly. “Where are you off to in such a hurry?”

Anakin flutters around the apartment, searching for his cloak, commlink, and boots. Obi-Wan knows exactly where each item is but he’ll let him struggle for a few moments. It’s a teaching moment. Anakin needs to get organized.

“I have a meeting with the Chancellor.” He turns over a pillow, frowning at the empty space beneath it.

“Another one?” That would be the third one this month, what the hell does the Chancellor want with him?

“Yeah.” Anakin replies absentmindedly. He’s only found his cloak so far.

Obi-Wan turns in his chair to face outwards towards Anakin, fighting down the swell of possessiveness he’s feeling. Force knows he lectures Anakin on that behavior enough, he doesn’t want to be too much of a hypocrite. “You do not _have_ to meet with him if you do not want too, dearest.”

Obi-Wan has many grievances with the Council, but the main one was them allowing Anakin to run off with the Chancellor so easily. On one hand it kept the Jedi Order in good graces with the Senate and Republic but on the other, Obi-Wan found it odd that out of all the Jedi, Palpatine would request Anakin’s presence. He doesn’t like politicians to begin with, but the Chancellor makes him feel…oily…like he’s missing something that’s always been right in front of him.

Anakin finally pulls his boots from where they had been kicked under the couch. “I want to,” He says placatingly. “It’s not a big deal.”

_Did that sound sincere to you, child of mine? Or is my son trying to convince himself into doing something he does not want to?_

A shiver rolls down Obi-Wan’s spine. “Maybe you should reschedule for another time,” he tries, “You start your rotation in the créche today.”

Anakin stiffens, telegraphing his annoyance, before his body language relaxes and calms. “No Obi-Wan, it’s fine.”

“Anakin—”

**_“I HAVE TO GO!”_ **

Lightning flashes and thunder rumbles. The shadows behind Anakin jump, changing forms with each strike. Glass shatters.

Its over as quickly as it started. Anakin unclenches his hands, and his eyes go soft and watery, his sorrow and embarrassment clear in the Force. “I’m sorry! I-I’m sorry! I’ll just…”

Anakin practically hurls himself out of the door in a whirlwind of limbs, not bothering to look behind him. Obi-Wan picks up the comm from where it was on the edge of the table, holding it in his hand as he stares out the door. He sighs, deciding that as much as he wants to go after Anakin, he probably won’t listen to him in this state.

_Might as well put this into use._

Time to call in the heavy artillery.

If there was one thing Obi-Wan would always be grateful for, it would be Shmi Skywalker’s never-ending patience with him and his endless questioning about her son’s biology and how to deal with him.

In the hurricane of events that led to Anakin becoming his padawan, Obi-Wan had never stopped to ask if Anakin’s mother had been freed as well. He assumed Qui-Gon knew better than that, but apparently not. By the time Obi-Wan was made aware of Shmi’s status as a slave, her freedom had already been bought by local moisture farmer, Cliegg Lars, as reparation for a life debt Shmi had collected by saving the life of his son. The two managed to stay in contact over the years and now Shmi was staying on the farm with the Lars family, using it as a halfway house in what Obi-Wan _suspects_ is an underground network for escaped slaves.

Obi-Wan already covers for the younger Skywalker’s shenanigans, the least he could do is try and keep his plausible deniability for when the older one decides she wants to openly lead a slave rebellion.

Shmi listens intently as Obi-Wan recounts what has been going on for the past few months, listing Anakin’s erratic behavior, the blue cast of the holo keeping her from betraying any emotions.

“How much has he been sleeping?”

Obi-Wan strokes his chin, thinking back. “Quite a bit if I’m to be completely honest,” He sighs, waving out a hand. “Anakin has not been sluggish, per say, but he’s not been at his best. But then again, his best is—”

“—far more than what is physically comprehendible for the mortal mind.” Shmi smiles, carrying on. “It’s hard to judge what is wrong with your child when you can’t understand what they truly are in the first place. Anakin at the point of peak exhaustion is still far more deadly than several dozen of your Jedi Knights. If you took him to a healer, they’d declare him perfectly healthy and send him on his way. There isn’t anything to compare him too.”

Obi-Wan relaxes, his shoulders dropping, relieved that Shmi understands his position on the matter. “Exactly. Do you know of anything that could cause this? Besides normal changes in human biology at his age? I suspected that the effects would be less potent given his Parent but perhaps I was mistaken.”

Shmi crosses her arms as she focuses on a spot off camera, clearly wracking her mind for answers. “If he hasn’t been feeding enough, I suppose that would do it. He went a week without a fresh kill once and he experienced the same symptoms but to a lesser degree. But Ani has told me he’s been able to hunt in your care, so I haven’t got the slightest idea.”

_Fresh kill?_

“Begging your pardon, Shmi, but I haven’t got the slightest idea to what you are talking about.”

Shmi’s eyebrows raise. “Anakin hunts with you, yes?”

Obi-Wan shakes his head, giving her a strange look. “No, he’s never _hunted_ with me.”

Shmi stares at him for a few beats. Her head cocks in the same eerie way that Anakin's does, and she snarls out something in what Obi-Wan has learned is Amatakka, the secret dialect of slaves. She heaves in a deep breath and locks eyes with Obi-Wan again, and he _swears_ he can feel her fury all the way from Coruscant.

“Anakin requires the flesh of the living,” She says in a measured breath as if trying not to scream. “He tells me the Jedi code speaks of ‘there is no death there is the Force’. As the son of Ar-Amu, Anakin cannot _die_.”

Obi-Wan’s heart stutters to a halt. Anakin can’t _what?_

“He is quite literally Ar-Amu’s spirit in a physical body. His very existence defies the laws of reality. Since he cannot die, he must cause death, for that is the only way his existence can achieve balance. If he does not feed, then his control of the Force will diminish into nothingness. Given his power it will take several thousand years, but eventually it will fade completely.”

Shmi sighs, her voice growing flat. “He never told you.”

Obi-Wan doesn’t bother hiding behind the façade of a mature Jedi Knight, and facepalms, dragging his hand down his face. “No, he didn’t.” He mutters out tiredly.

Shmi huffs out a short laugh. “I wouldn’t worry too much; the damage is repairable. I would suggest bringing him to Tatooine, he’ll need to eat.”

Something in Shmi’s tone made that sound like it _wasn’t_ a suggestion, more like “bring my idiot son here for an ass-whooping of a lifetime” but Obi-Wan didn’t plan on keeping Anakin on Coruscant anyways.

“Of course, Shmi. Thank you and may the Force be with you.”

“May Ar-Amu guide your path. Stay safe and see you soon.”

“…And that’s why it's so important to hunch your shoulders when portraying submissive body language.”

Padmé nodded sagely over the holo. “I see your point. However, I don’t think I’ll be using your advice for much longer. I’ll be out of office in a year.”

Anakin scoffed, his tone growing teasing. “Knowing you, you’ll still find a way to get in trouble three times over before then.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Pot meet kettle. Aren’t you hiding right now?”

“How’d you figure that out?” Anakin grumbled. Damn Padmé and her observational skills.

“You’re practically folded in on yourself and it's so dark that your eyes are glowing…are you in the footwell of a speeder!?”

Ok maybe he wasn’t as sneaky as he thought. “Maybe. What’s it to you.”

Padmé laughed loudly, covering her mouth with her hand as she looked around to check if anyone had heard her. “I can’t believe you dislike the younglings that much.”

“I don’t dislike the younglings,” Anakin hissed out. “I dislike the Masters that look at me like I’m going to _eat_ the younglings. And I’m hiding from Obi-Wan, I still have plenty of time before I need to get to the creche.”

Padmé leaned over to look at something off camera. “Actually, you were supposed to be there five minutes ago.”

“What?!” Anakin popped out of the footwell to glance at the chrono on the dash. “ _E chu ta!_ I was, I gotta go! I’ll comm you later! Bye!”

“Bye Ani. And you better solve whatever problem you had with Obi-Wan.” Padmé chuckled out.

Anakin ended the transmission and leapt out of the speeder, sprinting towards the direction of the hangar. If he was strong enough, he could—

_(take his mass of wings and fly through the Force, hurling himself through space and time to the point where it looked like teleportation, collapse in on himself and crawl through the shadows and the realms between them-)_

—use his powers to speed him up a bit but he didn’t have the energy. Palpatine had only managed to bring him a few Porgs today, the remnants of his kills hidden in the pockets of his robes. It wasn’t enough. Anakin doesn’t think he’s had enough to eat since he left Tatooine. He _hates_ going to Palpatine, to have to rely on someone for food but there wasn't anything he could hunt on Coruscant. The only time he got to actually provide for himself is when he and Obi-Wan go on a mission off-world. 

He makes it from the Temple hangar to the créche in record time, but it still isn’t enough to save him from the glares of the other padawans that were assigned to there as well, save Dara. He wasn’t popular at all, but most of his friends were in Aayla’s class, not his own age mates.

Luckily Master Yaddle seemed to take pity on his rumpled state and assigns him to watch the Clawmouse Clan in the créche library.

“Rather tired you look, young Skywalker. A well-behaved clan, they are. Much trouble, they should not be.”

See this was the reason why Master Yaddle was his favorite Councilor. Too bad she wasn’t on the Council anymore.

Anakin settles down in a good vantage point, letting the initiates talk among themselves in a low murmur as they work on projects and enjoy some downtime. Eventually he spots a lone Togruta curled away in the corner, her blue and white lekku purple in some spots, trying and failing to hide her _hurt-embarrassment-sorrow_ in the Force.

_“She needs you, my son. Go to her.”_

Anakin stands up and walks over to her, settling down next to her. Anakin thought she was completely zoned out, but she proves him wrong the moment his but touches the ground.

“Padawan Skywalker,” She says lightly. “Do you need me for something?”

Oh Ar-Amu was right. The poor girl did need help. Her mannerisms, the way she moved, it was so controlled, so forced, so _doll-like_. It was like she was fighting herself at her very core.

“Just call me Anakin. What’s your name?”

“Initiate Ahsoka Tano.”

“And you’re doing alright today, Ahsoka?”

The girl freezes clearly fighting with what she’s been told to say and what she wants to say. “No.” She finally grinds out. Tears well up in her eyes. “I’m not doing alright.”

Anakin’s pretty sure that if you listened closely you could hear his heart shatter. “What’s wrong, Ahsoka?”

“The extra Masters are all here for me. In case I have another _incident_.” She spits out the word as if it burns.

Anakin is bewildered. He thought they were for him. The normally are. “Are you sure?”

She fixed him with a look that carries too much sass for a ten-year-old. “You’re not the only one that’s labeled ‘a danger to others around them’ Skyguy.”

Anakin physically recoils. “I was just trying to help but if you wanna be snippy about it- “

“I bit a few kids.”

“Oh.”

Ahsoka huffs, crossing her arms. “It was lunch, and some Initiates out of Wolf Clan were making fun of me for what I was eating. It happens a lot because I’m on a carnivore’s diet, so I ignored them. But then they grabbed my lekku and squeezed them really tight. One of them called me a no-good predator. That I was gonna end up eating them in their sleep one day. So, I put a few of them in the Healing Halls. And now I’m on probation, and nothing happened to them.”

She held out her hands. “They filed my claws down. They want to do the same with my fangs.” She bares her teeth to reveal two sets of elongated canines on her top and bottom jaws. “If I ‘exhibit good behavior’ I’ll get to keep them. And they won't keep filing my claws down.”

Anakin stares at her, shocked. He knew human features were considered the galactic norm, but he never realized to this extent. He never told anyone about his dietary needs, Palpatine had found out _somehow_ , but that was for Obi-Wan’s sake not his.

“That’s so fucked up.” He breathes out. “I mean messed up. Don’t repeat that. Uh…”

Ahsoka laughs, smiling for the first time since Anakin’s seen her. “Well do you have any advice for me? You’re supposed to be the thing Sith are scared of. How do you do it?”

Anakin flashes his eyes, smirking. “You’re not scared?”

The Togruta snarls lowly, showing off her fangs and flexing her fingers where there would have been claws. “Nope.”

Anakin grins right back letting his own fangs drop. “I guess we’re one in the same Snips.”

He leans back against the wall thinking about advice to give the young girl.

“Don’t let them take your identity away from you. Just because the norm is human, it doesn’t mean you have to follow it. We’re not uniform little templates they can roll out. Play human when it's necessary, but never try and convince yourself you are human. You’re not uncivilized because of who you are. You’re just of a different culture. And _try_ not to bite anyone.”

“I think the word Master Mundi used was _eviscerate_. Whatever that means.”

“Snips, are those Initiates out of the Healing Halls yet?”

“…no.”

Anakin puts his head in his hands, half exasperated, half trying to contain his laughter. “I think that’s their punishment.”

Ahsoka shrugged. She went to speak but her stomach growled loudly. She sighed. “I wish I could eat fresh food. Not the frozen meat they keep in the refectory.”

Anakin knew he was screwed when he dug out the leftover Porg from his pocket and gave it to her. Predators didn’t just _give out_ food. He’s gonna protect this girl to his last breath.

“Skyguy are you sure? You don’t have to—”

“It’s fine,” He reassured. “You’ve had a tougher day than I have.”

Ahsoka beamed, happily digging in. She offers a few pieces to Anakin and they spend the rest of the time snacking on Porg and debating what type of meat is their favorite.

By the time the Clawmouse Clan’s library period is over, Anakin has firmly decided that Ahsoka had joined the list of people he considered _his_.

And he’s pretty sure Ahsoka had laid the same claim too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahsoka: "i need someone to be my friend, someone who won't run away. maybe send me an angel, the nicest angel you have."  
> anakin: *maniacal laughter as several buildings burn behind him*
> 
> togruta don't have claws in cannon but figured if they're considered predators then they get all of the features.


	9. walls could talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TW: minor coercion, grooming

By the time that Anakin had worked up the courage to go back to his and Obi-Wan’s shared apartment, it was well past sundown. He crept through the door to find the darkened apartment empty, relieved that he didn’t have to face his Jedi. Silently celebrating to himself, he straightened and began to walk to his own room. The mess he made with Obi-Wan was a problem for future Anakin; today Anakin is going to pretend that nothing happened.

“How did your meeting with the Chancellor go?”

Anakin yelped, turning around so quick that his padawan braid hit the back of his neck with a whip-like force. He winced, rubbing the sore spot as Obi-Wan turned on the lamp he was sitting next to. The Jedi was perched in one of the chairs in the living room, one leg propped on top of the other, visibly upset.

“It was fine,” Anakin motioned towards his door. “I’m really tired actually so I’m just gonna—”

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. “Have a seat Anakin.”

_Damn, damn, damn it, how am I going to get out of this one?_

Anakin sat down on the couch adjacent to Obi-Wan, leaning back into the seats. If he acts normal, he can just deflect and put the conversation off. “Why were you sitting in the dark? It’s not like you could see anything.”

Obi-Wan let out a short laugh, swiping his tongue over his teeth. “It’s funny you should mention that,” Oh he was in for it. “Considering that _you_ of all people could not see my presence whatsoever. I suppose _starving yourself for six fucking years_ would do that to a person!”

Anakin freezes. His mom and Obi-Wan must’ve had a chat then. “Oh. Right. So, this isn’t about my slip up this morning?”

Obi-Wan’s expression went from anger to what Master Vos calls his ‘Anakin has put me in another impossibly ridiculous situation’ face. “ _THAT’S ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THIS_ —”

Anakin cringed, leaning over to grab Obi-Wan’s arm. “Calm down! It’s not a big deal. I eat when we’re off-world.”

Obi-Wan shrugged off the touch, standing up and pacing around the apartment for a few moments, his _anger-disappointment-fear_ flying around the room. Anakin reached out, trying to cast calmer emotions into the bond, extending his senses and—

_(-a collapsed star was pulsing in front of him, ever-shifting with too-bright energy, taking the form of a million creatures, planets, thoughts, and futures somehow all at once-)_

—he _saw_ Obi-Wan. That tendril of strength that Anakin had accidentally woven into him all those years ago had taken root and _flourished_ just how Ar-Amu had predicted. Unfortunately, his elation was overshadowed by Obi-Wan’s fury.

“ _Not a big deal_? Anakin, how could you possibly think that? We go off-world every couple of months, you can’t be eating enough! Why would you hide this from me?!”

Anakin shot up from his seat, his own temper flaring. “You already get enough comments about me! The last thing I would want is for them to exile you for having a monster for a padawan! The Jedi are your family, and I’m not going to come between you and them; especially over something that won’t kill me! That _can’t_ kill me!”

Obi-Wan ran his hands through his hair, whirling around to face him. “I’m well aware of _that_ particular fact, but it’s still hurting you! Others may not be able to tell that you are not at full strength, but I am not others, Anakin!”

“What would you have even done? You’re so busy trying to be the Council’s perfect little Jedi that you would’ve never made time for me anyways! No one does! The only person that does is the Chancellor and he always wants something from me in return! I have to do tricks like a show pony just to get fed!”

Obi-Wan went deathly still, stepping forwards carefully. Maybe he shouldn’t have said that. _“What!?”_

Anakin deflated, dropping back down to the couch, and bowing his head. “Back on Naboo, before Qui-Gon’s funeral, I think the Chancellor saw me. Saw me eating. Doesn’t really matter, all that matters is that he figured it out and he’s been the one that gets me food on Coruscant,” He met Obi-Wan’s eyes, trying and failing to keep the tears out of his eyes. “He’ll import in creatures for me to hunt but it’s not free. He’ll make me use my powers, let him sit in on hunts, let him watch me, before I get to eat.”

Anakin snarled lowly, wiping away his tears, trying to fight his growing anger. “I hate it. It makes me feel so vulnerable, so useless, so _weak_. Like he's trying to put a leash one me. But I have to do it.”

He felt Obi-Wan sit down next to him, but Anakin refused to meet his eyes. He didn’t want to deal with Obi-Wan’s disappointed face.

“Anakin, look at me.”

Anakin turned his head at Obi-Wan’s gentle order, slowly lifting his gaze to Obi-Wan’s eyes. Obi-Wan’s face was distraught, pain swimming in the Jedi’s eyes. Obi-Wan cupped his face with both of his hands, bringing their foreheads together.

“Dear one, I am so, so, _sorry_.” 

Anakin broke at his words. He crashed into Obi-Wan’s chest, loud sobs flowing freely out of him as he wrapped himself around his Jedi. Obi-Wan tucked his chin over his head, pulling him even closer.

If Anakin closed his eyes, he could pretend that he was a nine-year-old boy again, running into his Jedi’s arms after a night terror because even though he held the power of the universe in his blood—he was still a kid. And despite how minuscule in the Force Obi-Wan was compared to him, Anakin never doubted for a second that Obi-Wan would be able to protect Anakin from the things even _he_ feared.

Except this wasn’t a night terror. This was real.

He felt Obi-Wan wrap his signature within his own, as if daring the Universe and everything that resided to try and harm Anakin. To see what would happen if they did; firmly marking Anakin as _his._

_“Hush, my son. I have chosen well for you. He will not leave. I would like to see him try. It is time for you to return home.”_

“I’m sorry I made you feel like I was not there for you. That I was more concerned with the Council’s opinion than your wellbeing. That I didn’t realize something was wrong sooner. I have not been a good teacher for you, Anakin. I have turned into the thing I swore never to become.”

Anakin shook his head, making a mental note to ask Obi-Wan about the last part later. “You’re the best teacher I could ever asked for. I was just hurt. I didn’t mean any of that. It wasn’t your fault.”

Obi-Wan’s grip tightened around him, his emotions suddenly flaring. “Palpatine is never going near you again. Ever. I’ll make sure he won’t even be able to look in your direction, not even _think_ about you.” He finished darkly.

There was _definitely_ several voices accompanying Obi-Wan’s own, but Anakin decided that they’ll face that revelation when they’re a little more emotionally stable. And not in the Temple.

“Weren’t you the one that taught me about limits and how it’s unethical to solve problems with Force suggestions?”

“He’ll be lucky if the _least_ I do is tear his mind into tiny pieces and leave him for dead on Korriban.”

“Fair enough.”

Obi-Wan stroked the side of his arm, as if he were reminding himself that Anakin was still here. Anakin responded by intertwining his signature even more thoroughly in Obi-Wan’s. If anyone was to look at them through the Force, they would appear as a single being.

“I’m petitioning the Council in the morning. After that’s done, we’re going to Tatooine and staying there for the foreseeable future. If there’s anything you want to request, now would be the time. I’ll need to write it down, so I’ll remember not to yell at the Council for two hours.”

Anakin warmed at the thought of going home, seeing his mother, and hunting under the triple moons. There wasn’t much more he could ask for, if he was being honest.

_“You’re not the only one that’s labeled ‘a danger to others around them’ Skyguy.”_

His heart panged as he thought of the fierce Togruta girl. How trapped she seemed on Coruscant. It wasn’t uncommon for Initiates to go on small missions with potential Masters, to see how they work together in the field before being taken on as a padawan learner. Ahsoka deserved some time off world and Obi-Wan is an uncanny negotiator. It shouldn’t be _that_ hard to swing.

“Well…there is _one thing_ …if you’re up for it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah so we're not having palps groom anakin, we're ending that shit here and now. can't believe i wrote 1000 words of these two having a heart to heart, im down bad omg. obi-wan's eldritch characterizations are based off of the concept of the unifying force, bc supposedly that was the element of the force he was strongest in, so there's your easter egg for what's to come.
> 
> originally ahsoka wasn't gonna go to tatooine w/ the boys but the more i thought abt it the more i liked the concept, so now it's a trio trip!
> 
> also i've got to stop updating in the middle of the night, this is ridiculous, i was only supposed to write like half of this.


	10. desert rose

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> heavy gore in this chap

“I can hear you Snips; you’re still dragging your left toe!”

“This isn’t fair, your hearing is _parsecs_ better than mine!”

Obi-Wan felt his lips turn up as he raised a hand to stifle his chuckle. Ahsoka had been trying to sneak up on Anakin for the better part of an hour and she hadn’t managed to get within thirty feet of him.

The Togruta huffed, putting her hands on her hips as she stomped back towards the edge of the Lars property where Obi-Wan was sitting and began again. She crouched low to the ground and started to take measured steps forwards with a loth-cat like grace, her foot hanging in the air each time she needed to think about her next move. The wind shifted and Ahsoka moved with it, stepping in a sideways motion to keep herself downwind of Anakin.

“She’s improving.”

Obi-Wan nearly had a heart attack as he glanced up over to find Shmi in the process of sitting down next to him. A Skywalker _will_ be the death of him, the question is which one would it be.

“She hasn’t managed to catch him just yet.” 

Shmi smiled, her eyes twinkling in a way that Obi-Wan knew meant trouble. “She will.”

When Ahsoka was about fifteen feet away from Anakin she crouched fully down on the desert flat, growing so still she could’ve been mistaken for a statue. A few moments passed before the girl became a blur of motion, skyrocketing into the air with her claws outstretched towards Anakin’s unprotected back. At the last moment, Anakin turned around and met Ahsoka halfway, tangling in the air and crashing into the ground. The two popped up and began circling each other, hissing and growling as they tested each other’s defenses. Anakin roared and-

_(-the desert shook as its son raised a challenge, reforming and resequencing itself to fit his needs as he prepared for a fight, the son of Ar-Amu growing predatory in his own visage, his thousands of limbs and claws thrashing and flailing towards the Togruta girl-)_

-postured himself, trying to get Ahsoka to back down. She grinned, roaring like a tigress in her own right and leapt forwards, unaffected by Anakin’s attempts to cow her into submission.

“What in Sith Hells have I gotten myself into?” Obi-Wan remarked flatly.

Shmi laughed loudly, patting Obi-Wan’s arm as she did. “My son, I ask myself this question every day.”

Shmi sobered, sparing a look at the two sparring in the flatlands. “Although you must admit, this trip has been good for them. It’s only been a week and even I can tell they’re both much livelier than when they first arrived.”

Obi-Wan made a noise in agreement as he recounted the events that led them to coming to Tatooine.

It hadn’t taken nearly as much convincing as he thought he would need to do when it came to talking to the Council about the whole Palpatine situation Anakin had revealed. There was a unanimous agreement to get Anakin the hell off Coruscant for the time being as the Jedi led an investigation into Palpatine. They hadn’t even raised that many questions about them taking Ahsoka with them.

Obi-Wan had taken to Ahsoka immediately, the Force whispering to him that she _belonged_ and the three of them had become nearly inseparable by the end of the week-long journey to Tatooine. When they arrived on the desert planet, they were immediately greeted by Shmi and the Lars, welcomed with warm hugs and the promise of a safe place for the time being. How ironic. Tatooine is one of the most dangerous places in the galaxy and he’s never felt more at ease.

He spared a glance at his padawan and pseudo padawan as they jumped and swiped around each other on the open flat. With the setting twin suns behind them, the two appeared as shadowy silhouettes playing in the harsh desert environment. Though, Anakin’s shadow would tend to forget it was supposed to be in the form of a person sometimes.

“One of my main points for Ahsoka’s being here was that the change of view would mellow her out. She’s going to come back even fiercer than before.”

Shmi fixed him a disbelieving look. “And you truly feel sorrow about that?”

“No,” He breathed out, unable to drum up any disappointment towards the matter. “I’d be quite upset if she did, actually.”

The Skywalker matron smiled warmly at him, voice softening. “They are your _alsahrai_ _.”_

Obi-Wan blinked, unfamiliar with the word. “My what?”

“In Basic it translates to Desert Rose. It’s a crystal that forms here in the dunes. They are symbols of strength and provide clarity to those they choose, but the term can be applied to living beings as well. They are said to be left by the _kol-depuan_ that have passed on to bring freedom and balance to their descendants. That’s what they are to you, and you to them. Ar-Amu could not have chosen better.”

Obi-Wan warmed as he thought over Shmi’s words, nearly melting at the sentiment behind them. There was a time where he thought he was destined for infinite sadness, that his only gift was the gift of death. But now…

He looked back towards his roaring padawans, Ahsoka finally managing to get the upper hand, twisting her body around Anakin’s neck, and slamming him into the ground, pinning him and snarling. Anakin grinned, hissing one final time to show off his own split mouth and gleaming fangs before yielding. Ahsoka jumped off immediately, laughing loudly as she pranced around Anakin.

“Master Obi-Wan! Shmi! I did it! Did you see!? Did you see!?”

Anakin huffed, shaking sand from his hair before grabbing Ahsoka and hauling her up onto his shoulder, the girl twisting violently from side to side trying to escape his hold, both cackling like hyenas.

_His alsahrai._

He dipped his head, lowering his eyes in respect. “I’m honored you think of me so highly.”

Shmi waved him off, looking up at the approaching children. “You did spectacular Ahsoka!” She stood up and wrapped the girl in a bone crushing hug, her pride flooding the Force in droves.

“Hey what about me!” Anakin called out as he trotted up to them. 

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes in faux-exasperation. “I think it is unfair to compare the ten-year-old to the seasoned predator that grew up hunting in these lands.”

“Psshh, whatever.” Anakin bumped his head into Obi-Wan’s shoulder, leaning into his side in the exact way he’s been doing since he was nine. Obi-Wan tries not to think of the day he’ll grow too big for it. He’s nearly there already.

Anakin gave Ahsoka a contemplative look before meeting his mother’s gaze. “I think she’s ready Amu.” Not even bothering to hide the sly undertone to his voice.

“If you believe so Anakin, then take her.” Obi-Wan hasn’t missed the way Shmi pronounces Anakin’s name, _AH-na-keen_ , instead of Anakin. He still has so much to learn about his padawan’s birth culture.

Anakin bounces on his toes, practically raring to go. “Can we leave now?”

Shmi shot him a withering look. “After you both drink something and install the power converter I told you to look at this morning.”

“But Amu—”

_“Anakin Ekkreth.”_

Anakin jumped back and briskly started walking towards the house. “I’ll put on the _tzai_. It’s supposed to go on the Number Four vaporator right? Yeah, yeah it is.”

Obi-Wan shook his head as Ahsoka giggled and started towards house as well.

“Try not to stay out too late, the both of you!”

Ahsoka laughed again, spinning around to face him. “You’re coming too Master!”

“I’m _what_!?”

By nightfall, the three of them were well into the Jundland Wastes. The two predators of the group were chomping at the proverbial bit, clearly struggling not to take off and leave Obi-Wan on his own.

“Anakin,” He his best to pronounce his name the same way Shmi did. “Are you sure you want me here—”

“ _Yes_. For the last time yes."

Ever since Anakin’s revelation about Palpatine forcing himself on Anakin’s hunts, Obi-Wan had been wary about the idea of tagging along. He had no qualms about it, he just didn’t want to impose.

Anakin froze suddenly, eyes gleaming wickedly under the moonlight. “’Soka you hear that?”

The Togruta took a few measured steps forwards, her head tilted towards the sky, taking deep breaths. “I think so. I can smell blood.”

The two shared a look before Anakin turned to him. “Obi-Wan get to the top of the cliffs, you’ll have the best vantage point from there.” He turned back to face Ahsoka, pointing towards the valley. “Snips, see that path on the rocks? You’re gonna move along the middle and wait for me to drive the herd this way, then you can drop down and choose the one you want. Got it?”

“Got it.”

Anakin grinned, backing into the shadows, the Force trembling around them. “Good, see you in the valley.”

The darkness twisted and yawned, swallowing Anakin whole as he disappeared into the void, leaving an empty spot in his wake. Obi-Wan turned to address Ahsoka, but the girl was already gone, just an off-black shadow leaping across the rocks in the distance.

_Always on the run._

Obi-Wan sighed and began his own ascent up the cliff, settling down in a secluded spot in view of the valley. It was then that he remembered that although Togruta’s physical senses were more acute than humans, they shouldn’t be anywhere _near_ as good as Anakin’s.

Suddenly, what could only be described as a demonic _screech_ echoed across the valley, with several faint, panicked squeals following it. Leaning into the Force, he saw Ahsoka stand and move towards the ledge she was stationed at, peering over the side of it. He heard the group before he saw them, the valley shaking due to the vibrations of the fleeing creatures.

They rounded the corner and Obi-Wan saw what was an objectively _terrifying_ sight. To him however, it was just another day in the life of running with the Skywalkers. A herd of eight Ronto were charging down the valley, being pursued a half-transformed Anakin.

His padawan would rush the edge of the group, swiping at the edge of the herd to keep them moving before dropping back, keeping his attacks random and fierce, funneling them right towards Ahsoka’s position. When they reached her outcrop, the girl dropped, landing on the neck of one Anakin had already tagged a few times. She screeched and bit into the head of the Ronto, thrashing around to cause as much damage as possible. It spasmed a few times in a vain attempt to get her off, but Ahsoka held steady and continued to maul the creature’s head, the sound of her snapping jaws and the crunch of bones echoing across the valley.

Anakin had managed to split two away from the group, backing them into the cliff wall. The panicked beasts stomped at him, trying to get Anakin to back off but he simply dodged their attempts, striking with outstretched claws before dashing out of range.

_“Quit playing your food, Anakin.”_

_“But that taking all the fun out of it! And I’m waiting on Ahsoka.”_

The Togruta in question dashed over, done with her own kill and began to help Anakin with his. Ahsoka sprinted in, using her small size to weave between their legs. The two Ronto skittered back into the open, standing back-to-back trying to cover themselves from the circling predators. Anakin suddenly dashed forwards, slicing into the leg of one and the Ronto cried in pain as it was forced onto its knees. Ahsoka, catching onto the idea, rocketed forwards and jumped, dragging both her hands down the stomach of her Ronto and gutted it, its intestines spilling out with a wet splat, dragging onto the ground.

The two prey animals cried out, trying to summon the rest of its herd but they were long gone, nearly at the edge of the valley. Finally taking pity on the dying creatures (most likely bored in actuality), Anakin and Ahsoka leapt up in tandem and tore out their chosen prey’s throat, the creatures’ death rattles reverberating across the desert.

Obi-Wan stood up and began to climb down when a flash of movement caught his eye. He paused and focused on the shadows before several bellows called out from the rocks across. His blood chilled as he recognized the sounds. Tuskens. 

**_“OBI-WAN GET DOWN HERE NOW!”_ **

Obi-Wan took a running jump and crashed onto the valley floor, landing next to Anakin and Ahsoka. He whirled and Anakin-

_(-transformed fully, the looming mass of shadows contorting around him to form a colossal dragon, six pairs of star-filled wings dripping darkness flaring around the group as he **roared** , the Force screaming in rage around them, lightning tracing eerie patterns across the sky-) _

-let his presence grow, the Son of Tatooine manipulating _his world_ as easily and nonchalantly as breathing. Ahsoka, not to be outdone, jumped forwards and screeched loudly, her shrill call adding to the spine-tingling noise Anakin was making.

_“It was meant to be there, child of mine. See what she will grow into.”_

The Tuskens turned tail and bolted, recognizing that they weren’t going to get any meat off this kill. Anakin calmed as they left, the lightning dying down and the shadows melted back into there natural forms.

Anakin turned to Obi-Wan, angling his body in a way that he wasn’t standing with his back fully turned towards the fleeing Tuskens. “Are you ok?”

Obi-Wan nodded, going to respond, but Ahsoka beat him to the punch.

“We’re fine Skyguy, can we eat now?”

Anakin smiled, blood still glistening from his mouth, neck and hands. Ahsoka herself still had brain matter in her teeth.

“We talked about this Snips, remember? Patience.”

Ahsoka sighed but dipped her head anyways. Anakin trotted back to Ahsoka’s kill and drug it back to where the other two carcasses were. He then sliced open the chest of the Ronto he had killed, flesh squelching as he dug around inside it. He pulled out its heart and presented it to Obi-Wan, with both hands outstretched.

“You have to take the first bite Obi-Wan, it’s tradition.”

Obi-Wan glanced down at the still bleeding heart. “Anakin—”

“You’re the first, Obi-Wan,” Anakin’s head twisted as his eyes shifted around. He had come to recognize this into his ‘translating this into Basic’ face. “The most respected, the elder. The heart is the most valuable. It’s our gift to you.”

Obi-Wan took a breath and spared a glance at Ahsoka, who was bouncing up and down on her toes, clearly excited for him to take a step into their world. Anakin looked almost hesitant, as if he was waiting for Obi-Wan to reject him.

Obi-Wan took a breath and bit in, expecting the iron tang of blood to overwhelm his senses. Instead, he was overcome with an indescribable taste, something he would equate to the finest Alderaanian wine but so much _more_. A primal _power_ flooded his veins as his vision went technicolor, the valley becoming awash in vivid colors he thought was impossible, his presence in the Force expanding-

_(-and he could feel every lifeform from here to the Western Dune Sea, he was in the mind and body of every creature, from the largest Krayt Dragon to the smallest anooba, he was everything, anything, it was all connected-)_

-to a magnanimous proportion. He hadn’t even noticed he had eaten the entire thing.

Anakin allowed a slow smile to spread across his face, his _happiness-pride-love_ radiating through the Force.

“Good?”

Obi-Wan nodded, trying to get his breathing back under control. “Extremely,” Ahsoka made a small noise of excitement to herself and let go of any semblance of control she tried to keep, hopping openly now. “Do you mind if I join you for dinner?”

Anakin and Ahsoka both laughed, and Obi-Wan realized that they were planning this the _whole time_ , and the two of them escorted him over to the dead Ronto.

“That’s why we took down three of them, Master.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey y'all im backkkkk. 
> 
> so quick little things abt this chapter. so alsahrai is not an amatakka word, i made that up bc there is not a word for desert rose. i took the root of the Arabic word for desert rose (according to google translate) and played around with it until i found something i liked and i thought sounded like amatakka. the story behind the desert rose is one i modified from a native american legend i found, but the properties behind it are real so if you need some mental clarity, get you a desert rose. 
> 
> kol-depaun is an amatakka word, meaning unfettered or unchained, so a freed slave. 
> 
> anakin's and ahsoka's hunting styles are a mixture of the ones of wolves, tigers, and jaguars, with ahsoka leaning more towards the tiger/jaguar style and anakin's being firmly rooted in wolf-like behavior. shili is very foresty and akul are massive so i figured that instinctively she would like to sit up and trees/high ground and wait for prey to come near while anakin would be more versed in tiring his victims out since the desert is all open ground. 
> 
> also i probably put wayyy to much thought into that but i was an animal planet kid, sue me i have loads of knowledge on this topic. 
> 
> as always, thanks for reading and the link to my tumblr is below in case you wanna say hi!
> 
> https://www.tumblr.com/blog/stormsirxn


	11. summers in vegas

Ahsoka couldn’t sleep.

It wasn’t a new concept for her, back at the Temple her restless nights stemmed from the too-loud ambience of the sleeping bodies in the creche, the rasp of air being pulled against sentient lungs, the rough scratching of fingers against sheets, and the distant roar of Coruscanti traffic.

The more she tried to drown it out the louder the noise got. She supposed it was the curse of being a Togruta. Even though no other Togruta she’s spoken to has ever claimed to have hearing so sensitive that they swore they could hear the _universe_ vibrating.

On Tatooine none of that was a problem. The wind whispering through the desert plains was calming, not grating. The bodies breathing on the Lars farm was soothing, not harsh. They were miles away from the nearest city, she couldn’t pick up any speeders if she’d tried. Maybe.

But she still couldn’t sleep.

Sighing, she gingerly climbed out of bed and grabbed her lightsaber. If she couldn’t sleep then she might as well train. The low light in the house wasn’t a problem, even if her eyes didn’t adjust to the low light, her echolocation practically mapped out the entire homestead for her. She kept her footsteps light as she walked up the stairs, knowing that she wouldn’t wake the human members of the house with her wandering.

She was being careful because of Skyguy. He’s the only thing she’d ever met that had better hearing than her.

Anakin didn’t scare her. Despite every rumor she’s ever heard about him and the fact that every time he stood in the corners of her vison he would _blur,_ she wasn’t scared. He had teeth and claws and so did she. They were one in the same.

_Maybe more alike than I realize._

Ahsoka made it outside without incident, relaxing her gait once she made it past the vaporators. Once she made it to a spot she was comfortable with, she ignited her saber and went into the opening forms of Shii-Cho.

She made it all of ten minutes before she got bored of it. Checking behind her shoulders for a presence that wasn’t there, she slowly slid into an Ataru kata. Technically speaking, all lightsaber forms were allowed for younglings to try. It’s just that she had been banned from the more aggressive ones for now. For obvious reasons.

She was so absorbed in her kata she almost missed the approaching footsteps coming from behind her.

“You’re leaving your left side open.”

Ahsoka spun around to find Obi-Wan standing behind her, the barely-there rising suns highlighting the golden shade of his hair.

“Morning Master! I was just…uh—”

“Quite focused into an Ataru kata. It suits you well, you have all the markings of forming into a great practitioner of it.”

Her guilt at being caught quickly turned into pride. Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, the first Jedi in a thousand years to kill a Sith, thought she was good with a saber?

Obi-Wan must’ve picked up on her emotions in the Force because he smiled softly and stepped forwards some. “I was coming out here to meditate but I’d be happy to help you if you pleased.”

Ahsoka blinked rapidly, trying to mask her shock as best she can. “Of course! I’d love that!”

Obi-Wan dipped his head and grabbed his own lightsaber from his belt. He ran through the kata a few times with her, pausing to explain where she was messing up, making sure to explain why it was wrong and how to fix it. Anakin was totally right. Obi-Wan was the best teacher _ever._ No one had ever been this patient with her before.

As they stretched through their cool down, Ahsoka worked up the nerve to ask the question that had been eating at her the entire time.

“Master you use Soresu the most, right?”

“That’s right.”

“But…you’re so good at Ataru? Like, really good! Why don’t you use that form more?”

A flash of _something_ went through the Force but it was so fleeting Ahsoka couldn’t name the emotions. Obi-Wan breathed a deep sigh and Ahsoka worried that she’d managed to mess up so bad she was back down to one friend. She quickly backtracked, trying to reverse the damage.

“Not that you’re bad a Soresu or anything! You’re really good at that form too. It’s just that they’re complete opposites and…I’m sorry…I didn’t mean…”

Obi-Wan’s eyes widened and he reached out to squeeze her hands, projecting comfort across their fledgling bond. She doesn’t think anyone outside Master-Padawan pairs were supposed to have bonds, but she already had one with Anakin. None of them were what someone would call normal. Or rule followers.

The Jedi Knight smiled warmly at her, instantly calming her nerves. “Little one, it’s alright. Your question just caught me off guard.”

He gently pulled her down to the ground, sitting across from her cross legged. “You remind me of myself when I was your age. I suffered from nearly the same plights you have been going through now.”

Obi-Wan’s voice softened as he continued. “I wasn’t Master Qui-Gon’s first choice for a padawan. It was only though a mission that went wrong that I was assigned to him. I struggled with aggression, the tendency to lash out, being hot-headed,” He quirked his lips, meeting her eyes. “Ataru did nothing to curb any of those impulses. So, to keep Master Qui-Gon and the Council happy, I started to focus more on Soresu. It worked out for the most part. I still practice Ataru when I can, but I’m just used to using Soresu now.”

Ahsoka nodded, taking in all the information. Obi-Wan used to be like her? It seemed as ridiculous of a statement as saying Anakin was a vegan. Or that bantha’s smelled good. It didn’t make any sense and seemed completely untrue.

But Skyguy did say there was something _off_ about Obi-Wan. The same way he was off. It was why they drug him out to the Wastes the other night. To see if their hunch was right. Obi-Wan may seem like the perfect Jedi, but he also ate an entire Ronto. Normal humans didn’t do that. She thinks. She really should’ve paid more attention in interspecies biology.

Ahsoka went to respond but this oppressive _noise_ started coming through the Force from all sides, like it was demanding to know where she was. It was so loud she went to cover her montrals even though the noise wasn’t physical.

“ _What is that_?”

Obi-Wan’s shoulders sagged some and a tired look made its way onto his face. “That,” He drug his hand down his face, his palm resting over mouth, so his next words came out slightly muffled. “Is Anakin.”

Sure enough, a bleary-eyed Anakin Skywalker popped up from the entrance of the house, squinting due to bright natural lighting. He stared at them for a few seconds, as if confirming to himself that they were there, before nodding to himself and beginning to climb back down the stairs.

“You’re not going to mediate with us?” Obi-Wan called out to his retreating form.

Anakin halted in his tracks, spinning around to face them with the most offended look casting over his features. He cupped his hands to call back, but rolled his eyes and started to project his thoughts through their bond. 

_“You woke up at the ass-crack of dawn to meditate!?”_

_“Anakin!”_

_“I’m going back to sleep.”_

_“It’s good for you Anakin, it clears your mind and it’ll help strengthen your connection to the Force.”_

_“…is the latter really necessary for me?”_

_“Just go back to sleep.”_

_“Oh thank Ar-Amu, I’ll see the both of you during normal people hours.”_

_“Normal people hours? You aren’t normal Skyguy, none of us are.”_

_“Shut up Snips, goodnight.”_

_"It's morning."_

_"GOODNIGHT!"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wasn't gonna update bc this is kind of short but the next chapter is gonna be long af (or at least i'm planning for it to be) and this scene didn't really fit into its vibe. so out this chapter goes.


	12. astrothunder

**Coruscant, Industrial District**

The blood-orange tint of the industrial district always unnerved Dooku, despite his best efforts to ignore the feeling.

_Maybe it’s what lies inside that you truly fear._

Nonetheless, his Master had requested that they meet in person on Coruscant. His misgivings about the sky were miniscule in comparison to what they needed to discuss.

“Welcome home, Darth Tyrannus.”

Home. Was a dilapidated warehouse truly home? Already, he was itching to return to the forests of Serrano. But Sidious saw past the corruption in the Republic and dogma of the Jedi. If the Dark Side was the only way to usher in a new age of prosperity to the galaxy, then so be it.

Dooku bowed slightly, making sure to stare hard into the ground. “My Master.”

Sidious made the motion for him to rise and walk forwards. He led them to a dusty holotable in the corner of the room, powering it up after it flickered for a few moments.

“The Jedi have been more aware than I have foreseen. Their investigation into me will bear no fruit, but their scrutiny has put a halt into my plans for Vader. Perhaps indefinitely. What is the status of the clone army?”

Dooku pulled up the data on the Kaminoans army, highlighting the production rates and training videos. “They are progressing well. The first batches will be undergoing their first field tests within the next few months.”

“And what of the Confederacy and the droid army?”

Dooku switched over to a different screen, showing a map of the galaxy and various planets that were loyal to the Separatists. “Five hundred star systems have joined the CIS so far. The Geonosians have agreed to become one of the main foundries for droid production. Felucia has been resistant but the planet is so vast, they will not notice a factory or two.”

Sidious smiled widely from beneath his hood. “Excellent work, my Apprentice.”

He dispelled the images and displayed a map of the Kessel system, zooming into the Maw cluster. “With Vader no longer within my reach, I believe it is time to begin my secondary plan.”

Sidious turned to him; his lips half curled into a snarl. “What do you know of The Ones?”

Dooku blinked a few times, trying to swallow the dread that was rising through his body. He didn’t like where this was going. “Not much. There are three. The Father, the Daughter, and the Son. They are deities to the Dathomirians.”

Sidious shook his head, shaking his finger slightly. “You are correct, in a sense. There is another. A mortal that ascended into godhood. The Mother. When the Ones learned of her treachery, they imprisoned her within the Maw and left.”

“And where does she fit into our plans?”

Sidious cut his gaze over to Dooku, golden eyes blazing. “I have located the planet she is trapped on within the Maw. Unless the flow of the Force is altered, she cannot escape it. But if the space stations that maintain the Maw are destroyed, I will be able to get to her. You will destroy Centerpoint and Sinkhole Station. With Vader obsolete, Abeloth will be my weapon to usher in a new age in galactic history. I will be indomitable, and my rule eternal.”

Dooku dropped to knee, bowing his head. “As you wish, My Master.”

**Tatooine, The Jundland Wastes**

With Anakin and Ahsoka off catching breakfast, Obi-Wan decided to do some exploring of his own. Tatooine was a mostly a vast barren landscape but the Wastes were a reminder of what the planet once was. And a reminder of what happened here sixteen years ago.

Obi-Wan was just a youngling when the Great Flood of Tatooine happened. He remembers it being the talk of the entire galaxy for months on end, everyone from scientists to philosophers trying to deduce what exactly happened. How a planet that had not see rain in thousands of years spontaneously created a monsoon that covered the entire planet, the effects of it supposedly even reaching out to _other_ planets in the star system.

The Temple had been a buzz of nervous energy in the hours before the storm broke out, nearly every Jedi feeling as if the Force was holding its breath. And then it was yelling, screaming, howling, not about the lives lost during the flood, but because of what _caused_ the flood. It was almost as if the Force had been waiting for it to happen.

Obi-Wan always had an unwarranted fascination about Tatooine and the phenomenon that happened there. It wasn’t until he met a boy with lethal blue eyes and the power of a god that he figured out _why_ he was so connected to the planet.

Even now, the land still bears the scars of the storm. There are enormous fissures in the mountains surrounding the Wastes, skeletons of creatures that weren’t really skeletons, just piles of shattered bone fragments on the ground. The valley he was travelling through didn’t even exist sixteen years ago, according to the Lars it had been carved out by a river than flowed so fast it ate away at the rock in a mere six hours.

As much as he’s tried to ignore it, Obi-Wan knows that coming back to Tatooine has triggered an evolution of sorts. Both in him and his two padawans. It’s not like he didn’t see it coming. He supposes he’s tried to be oblivious too it for so long because the Jedi preached conformity and not individuality.

To be an anomaly among them is asking to be exiled. 

Anakin’s powers have strengthened past devastating levels, to the point where the boy is discovering a new ability almost daily. There isn’t much he can’t do at this point, the only thing holding him back is his lack of experience. Obi-Wan wonders how much stronger he could’ve been if he was actually getting fed normally on Coruscant.

Ahsoka’s transformation has been slower, probably because she was so newly bonded to him and Anakin, but it didn’t mean the young Togruta girl was exempt from its effects. He’s studied Togruta behavioral habits, particularly their echolocation abilities and there’s no way Ahsoka should be able to hear as well as she does. She has a strong connection to the Living Force as well, so strong that if she lets her shields drop while she isn’t concentrating, _plants_ will spring up or bloom around her. And he’s seen how strange blood acts around her. The way it hovers around her hands and body after she feeds.

He theorizes that Anakin’s abilities have heightened their own natural abilities and will continue to do so as the years go on. Obi-Wan has never had much luck with the Living Force, it’s why he was paired with Master Qui-Gon in the first place. The Council hoped that it would help balance him out, that training under such a powerful Living Force user would nurture his connection to it. In hindsight, all it did was smother his connection to the Unifying Force.

His visions have been growing stronger and more frequent since bonding with Anakin, often pertaining to disjointed visions of war and turmoil. It’s why he’s been so studious with his research on old battles. If he isn’t seeing visions of war, then he’ll find himself on a far-away jungle planet that seemed to be isolated from the galaxy. Almost like a prison. He can’t get rid of the nagging feeling that something is coming. That something is waking up.

The Unifying Force is rumored to be the thing that binds together stars and planets, the burning energy that connects celestial bodies to one another. He took that particular theory with a grain of salt, but now…

Every time he stares into the mirror for too long, he swears he can see himself on fire. His hands will ache and ache, and the fire will _reach_ like its begging to get out-

_(-he’s a supernova on the precipice of exploding, godly, binary, just waiting for a tiny lapse of self-control, he’s everything, he’s cosmic, a glowing mass of light in a barley human shape, burning, burning, burning-)_

-and then he blinks, and it’s gone. Like it was never there in the first place.

So with Anakin and Ahsoka gone, Obi-Wan has taken the time to go off on his own. Partly to explore is own rising powers and partly to do something that he’s been meaning to do for a long time.

When he killed the Sith Lord on Naboo, he told the Council that he managed to slay it by summoning Qui-Gon’s saber. But that’s not what happened. He kept the other half of the Sith’s lightsaber he used to kill him, stored away in a locked chest for years. For some reason he had an inkling to take it to Tatooine.

Obi-Wan wanders around aimlessly until he finds a small overhang looking out over the rest of the valley. He settles down and pulls out the saber, the blade igniting as a blood red beam. He’s heard stories about being able to purify a bled crystal, to reconfigure it back to its original state. Tatooine, a planet that has been a source of rebirth for all of them, seems like the perfect place to try it.

He sets the lightsaber down, closing his eyes and holding out his hands, reaching for the Force. He feels the lightsaber disassemble, his signature wrapping around the crystal, pushing his intent to heal as hard as he can.

_Heal, heal, heal._

Nothing happens. He tries again for longer, willing for the crystal to lose its cracked red tint. Nothing happens. Growing frustrated, he clears his mind and decided to abandon logic and go with his instincts. He reaches with his power and lets it flow, leaving his intent undecided.

_Burn, burn, **burn.** _

He opens his eyes, and the saber is reassembled in front of him.

_Here goes nothing._

He picks up the saber, holding his breath his finger hovers over the ignition switch. He flips it on, and a starshine orange blade is revealed.

_“Well done, child of mine.”_

Letting out an astonished giggle, he jumps to his feet and twirls the blade a few times checking to see if the blade was stable. The blade stays smooth. He laughs, extinguishing the saber and hooking it on to his belt.

And then immediately panics because his robe is on fire.

He throws it off, stamping the burning article of clothing into the ground, as he looks around for the source of the fire. He glances down and catches a look at his hands which were now _glowing_. His panic turns into wonder as he stares down at his burning hands, both emitting a primarily orange-yellow glow with flashes of blue around them. It reminds him of solar flares on a star, mostly condensed into one area with certain spots bursting out depending on the moment.

He stares out from the overhang, looking out and a sheer cliff wall across from him. He holds out a hand, aiming at the wall. There’s a huge _boom_ and he goes flying back, landing roughly on the ground. He gets back up and the wall has been completely destroyed, the burned remnants of it tumbling to the valley floor below. He aims lower this time with both hands, bracing himself, and the contained cosmic energy becomes a supernova, blasting out and burning through the lower part of the wall.

The entire valley shakes and he can distantly hear rocks tumbling down from other parts of the valley. He pulls back on his power until it contains and he’s no longer glowing, deciding that he’ll experiment more on stable ground with less chance of burying himself or the locals in a rockslide.

A loud buzzing that he’s learned to associate with Anakin comes ringing through the Force, and he opens his shields to let him through.

_“Obi-Wan! What the fuck was that!? Are you ok!? Where are you!?”_

_“I’m fine dearest, don’t worry. Just exploring the heights of my abilities.”_

_“Well the heights of your abilities just scared off breakfast. We’re coming to you and then we’re gonna circle back and try again.”_

The bond goes silent and all Obi-Wan can hear is the settling of rocks until there’s a low roaring sound, also something he’s learned to associate with Anakin. They must’ve traveled through the shadows instead of running over here.

“Hey Master.”

Obi-Wan jumps, whirling around to find Anakin and Ahsoka emerging out of the shadows behind him. The darkness clings to Anakin for a few moments, merging with his body before melting back into its proper place.

“I told you two to quit doing that, between you and your mother I’m going to have a heart attack one of these days.”

Ahsoka giggles as Anakin waves a hand. “You’ll be fine. Plus, it’s fun.”

Anakin meets his eyes, and his smile drops, his gaze turning calculating and Ahsoka’s doing the same. He’s never been the subject of _those_ stares and it’s a terrifying sight to see, eliciting a primal fear that races up his spine and forces his whole body cold.

“What is it?”

Anakin steps forwards, Ahsoka a half a step behind, their heads cocking in sync. Anakin has grown in the months they’ve been on Tatooine, the boy now and inch or so taller than him. He slowly grabs Obi-Wan’s face, the predatory look morphing into an astonished one.

“Your eyes are glowing,” He breathes out. “Actually, all of you is. But your eyes are the brightest.”

“Oh. Right.”

Anakin grins and flings himself into Obi-Wan’s arms, wrapping around him tightly. “It’s about time you figured it out.”

Obi-Wan lets out a small laugh, hugging him back just as tight. “Yes well, I thought it was time I removed the wool from my eyes. Metaphorically and literally.”

“Hey, no fair! I want cool powers too!” Ahsoka pouted out from the corner.

Anakin removes himself from Obi-Wan’s arms, deciding to lean into his side instead to face Ahsoka. “I think yours will come in time.”

“ _In time?_ ”

Obi-Wan steps forwards, going to separate the two. “Actually, I have a theory on that. Ahsoka, see that dead root over there? Focus on it. Don’t think, just reach out and do what feels natural.”

Ahsoka blinks a few times before holding a hand towards the root and evening her breathing. There are a few moments of silence before the Force hums and the dead root greens, springing into a healthy and fully formed vine.

The girl lets out a squeal and jumps up and down a few times. “Did you see that!? Oh my stars!!! This is so awesome.”

Obi-Wan chuckles and Anakin picks Ahsoka up and spins her into a hug. “That may not be the only thing you can do, little one.”

Ahsoka turns her head towards him. “What? I can do more?” She turns back to Anakin and punches his shoulder, causing him to wince. “Aren’t you supposed to be the expert on these things? How come you didn’t know?”

“Hey I’m still figuring stuff out too! I’m the one who figured out the both of you weren’t normal in the first place!”

“Because you _saw_ us you nerfherder.”

“If you two would stop bickering, we can get on to the rest of Ahsoka’s powers.”

The two quieted down as Ahsoka twisted herself out of Anakin’s arms.

Obi-Wan reached out a hand, motioning to Anakin. “Anakin, give me a claw.”

He shoots Obi-Wan a look but his hands morph anyways, his fingers elongated, dark claws springing from the end of them. Obi-Wan takes a finger and slices into his wrist, his blood dripping onto the ground.

“Obi-Wan, what the hell—”

“Ahsoka, do the same thing but with the blood.”

Ahsoka reaches out a hand and the blood levitates off the ground, swirling around her hands.

“Try and form it into something.”

She twists her fingers, and the liquid turns sharp and jagged, like a liquid form of an obsidian spear. She lets it hover for a few moments before burying it into the wall, the blood liquifying a few seconds after contact, leaving nothing but a gaping hole in its wake.

“I take it back, that’s the best thing I can do.”

Obi-Wan glances over at Anakin, trying to see if his padawan had figured out what the last ability Ahsoka gained was. His eyes brighten, and he grabs the both of them, making for the shadows in the corner. “I think we need to be on the ground for the last one.”

“The last one!?”

Obi-Wan blinks and they’re standing on the valley floor, away from any rocks that might hit them.

“Obi-Wan, can I take over here?”

He steps back, motioning for Anakin to go ahead.

“Snips, remember how you told me that you thought you could hear things vibrating?”

“Yeah…” Ahsoka says with a confused tone, not getting at what Anakin was saying.

Anakin points to a section of the valley that Obi-Wan hadn’t incinerated yet. “Listen to that wall over there and then try and amplify it. The buzzing sounds.”

Ahsoka reaches and the rock splits, tumbling down onto the floor. Her eyes widen and she focuses on another section. She reaches out again and a concentrated blast of sound explodes from her hands and slams into the wall, this time localizing the damage to the specific area she targeted.

She drops her hands, whirling around to face the both of them. “So _that’s_ why my hearing is so sensitive?”

Anakin and Obi-Wan share a look before bursting out into laughter, the look of pure annoyance on the eleven-year old’s face priceless.

Obi-Wan calms himself to address Ahsoka. “Everything in the universe vibrates, my dear. You have the ability to sense those vibrations, and through the Force manipulate them.”

“What about the plants? And the blood?”

Anakin steps in this time. “You’re super talented in the Living Force ‘Soka. Blood is life for living creatures and all life starts with plants.”

“Huh. I guess. Anything else?”

“Not that I’m aware of, no.”

Anakin points back out to the open desert. “Can we go catch food now? I wanna get home before noon.”

Ahsoka nods, already shuffling towards the plain. “Yeah we totally scared off anything in this quadrant.”

"And afterwards, you're gonna tell us why you have that _thing's_ saber and why it feels so different." 

Obi-Wan chuckles, walking back in the direction of the dunes. “Come on you two, let’s go.”

The predators grin and sprint off into the rising suns.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy black history month y'all!!! 
> 
> regarding the chapter, if you want better visuals of obi-wan's abilities my reference was captain marvel's powers. ahsoka's are like quake, skarlet (mortal kombat), and poison ivy/danielle panabaker from sky high all wrapped into one. technically all life starts with heat/sun but the food chain starts with fitoplankton so yeah. anakin is just fuck off powerful but we've established that lol. obvi, they're gonna have to train some more before they get their full powers, so by clone wars they'll be there but not yet lol 
> 
> ive said this before but all the titles of the chapters are songs from my anakin skywalker playlist on spotify, my username on there is the same as my pseud on here (stormsirxn) so if you want to listen/see what the next chapters may be called go take a look! astrothunder just reminds me of space and the conflicting thoughts a jedi might have about their religion and it's one of my favorite songs so i was super excited to use it, plus first chapter of black history month is named after a song by a black artist. honestly that was the whole reason is why i got this out so quick lmao. the comments too, i really love seeing all of y'alls thoughts and theories and i never expected to get such a big response since this is like the first serious story i've written lmao. 
> 
> also abeloth has been named. do what you want with that information. i will be getting into her backstory later on but if you want to research on your own, go right ahead.


	13. cali god

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> tw: slight gore

“You’re saying nothing is to be done to Palpatine?!”

Master Windu sighs over the holo call, clearly fighting the urge to face palm. “The most we can do is enforce a restraining order, despite how suspicious the Chancellor’s behavior towards Anakin has been. There simply isn’t enough evidence to go after someone that powerful.”

Obi-Wan folds his arms over his chest as Shmi softly snarls from behind him. The two Lars men at the table don’t say anything, but their outward disgust and disappointment is clear in the Force.

“So that’s it then.” Obi-Wan remarks flatly.

Master Windu nodded. “I’m afraid so. Coruscant Police have closed the investigation and the Jedi don’t have jurisdiction.”

Obi-Wan bowed his head, checking his fury, focusing on not letting his eyes flash. Master Windu may not be able to sense anything different about him from here, but bright orange eyes still show up over holo-call.

“I won’t rush you back, but it’s been over a year since you’ve been on planet. With the investigation closed, the Council is going to want the three of you back sooner than later.”

“I understand.”

“May the Force be with you.”

Obi-Wan ends the holo-call and Shmi immediately bursts into Amatakka, managing to pick up the words that roughly translate into “fucking bastard” and “bantha-shit for brains”. Cliegg shakes his head and takes a sip of his drink, muttering about Republic insolence and Owen nods in agreement.

Obi-Wan leans against the wall and runs a hand down his face, dreading having to break the news to Anakin. Speaking of the devil…

There’s the distant sound of footsteps and Ahsoka comes bounding down the stairs, the Togrutra’s usual bubbly attitude now dark. There’s still a bit of blood on her face from a recent hunt. She plops down in a seat, her face flat, radiating discontentment.

Obi-Wan looks her over. “I assuming you heard?”

Ahsoka snorts, picking at her nails. “When do I not,” She continues, answering the question everyone in the room was wondering. “Anakin isn’t here, we split up at the canyons. Said he needed to do something.”

Obi-Wan tilts his head slightly, furrowing his eyebrows. “What in the blazes would he need to do out there?”

Shmi’s eyes flicker back and forth before a look of realization comes across her face as Ahsoka responds.

“He said he needed to talk to Ar-Amu.”

Anakin _hated_ meditating. He could never sit still, and he preferred to be on the go, always moving. Besides, meditating when you are the Force is kind of pointless. But when he wants to talk to Ar-Amu, it takes a certain type of environment. And minimum safe zone.

He reaches his preferred cave and settles down, closing his eyes and slowing his breathing. He lets himself drift, allowing himself to forget about a corporeal form and human tendencies. He lets himself _breathe_ and-

_(-he isn’t on Tatooine anymore, he can no longer feel the heat, the sand, his body, he’s in limbo, a space outside of time and reality, a space where the universe seems to spin, stars and planets being born and dying all at one time, he’s shifting, changing, transforming, every second, every millisecond, he can only understand this part of him when he lets himself be godly-)_

-he _ascends_ and waits. Out of the swirling kaleidoscope of nebulas, a female figure appears, walking so gracefully she appears to be floating, wearing an elegant dress of flowing sands, emitting feelings of _mother-warmth-parent-home-fierce-primordial-survivor_.

Anakin feels all his mouths turn up into a grin. “Hi Amu.”

The goddess smiles back and envelopes him in a hug before pulling back. Ar-Amu was the only one that could manage to hug him so securely. No one else had enough arms for it.

**_“Ekkreth, you’ve grown so beautifully.”_ **

“I don’t know if beautiful is the right word.”

Ar-Amu tosses her head, the kaleidoscope of colors losing their bright hue for a second.

**_“The mortals don’t understand true beauty. They lose their sanity at the slightest glimpse of your true form; their minds cannot comprehend it. You shouldn’t heed their words. Heed your alsahrai and your alsahrai only.”_ **

The goddess turns and motions towards herself.

**_“Walk with me Ekkreth, I must show you something.”_ **

Anakin takes a few steps and the scenery changes. They’re no longer in the galactic limbo Ar-Amu prefers to manifest in. They’re a few realms above the physical plane most life-forms reside in, appearing as abnormal shadows to anyone who doesn’t have Ar-Amu’s gifts.

The first thing Anakin notices is the rain. It’s torrential, coming down in droves and Anakin is sure that any normal creature would have bedded down for the night of they were to be caught out in it. The second thing he notices is the flashes of white armor coming towards him through the forest. They aren’t droids, he can tell that they are human underneath the bucket helmets of theirs. They don’t seem to be bothered by the rain, acting as if the monsoon is a normal occurrence for them.

The four burst out of the undergrowth, all panting heavily. The one in the lead tears off his helmet to reveal his face, the rest doing the same. Anakin tilts his head, confused.

One has buzzed blonde hair, and one has a large cut running down the side of his face, the other two identical except for varying lengths of hair, but their facial features are exactly the same. In the Force, however, they’re wildly different, each with their own unique signature.

**_“Clones, Ekkreth.”_ **

The one with the bleeding wound calls out to the blonde. “I think we lost them Rex.”

The blonde, Rex, shakes his head, still looking over his shoulders. “I know Jango likes to throw _osik_ at us because you’re the favorite Kote, but that was fucked!”

“Fuck off,” Kote, wipes at his eyes, trying to divert the streams of blood pouring into them.

“Lemme look at it.”

Kote, sticks out an arm, trying to wave the other clone off. “I’m _fine_ Kix.”

_“Cody.”_

“Kote, stop being a prideful ass and let your _vod_ look at your eye. You look like you’re about to lose it.”

“Yeah, listen to Wolffe.”

“Alright!” Kote yells, motioning for the group to settle down. “I’ll let you look at my eye as long as we get to discuss a plan on how the hell we’re going to get out of here?”

Rex doesn’t even flinch. “Deal.”

“I’ll start,” Wolffe pipes in dryly, “This isn’t Jango’s doing.”

Kix pauses from where he’s tending to Kote’s injury. “What? No way.”

“Actually…I was thinking the same thing.”

The clones explode into conversation, and Anakin takes the chance to talk to Ar-Amu. “Who are they?”

**_“Reach out, Ekkreth. What do you see?”_ **

Anakin casts his senses out and looks-

_(-he sees warriors, battle-born soldiers painted in deadly blue and starshine orange, snarling and snapping at his alsahrai's sides, promising death to anything that dares to cross them, the blood of their blood, their brothers-)_

-he stops, puts the pieces together.

“The blonde belongs to me and Ahsoka. So does the medic. Kote is Obi-Wan’s.”

**_“And the one that shares the spirit of the loth-wolves?”_ **

Anakin peers into Wolffe harder, trying to discern the last clone’s future. “Important. But not ours.”

**_“Very good, my son._** **_They will be yours, and they will love you as fiercely as you will grow to love them. This is your first chance to meet them.”_**

Anakin turns back to the scene below him and he can see a group of thirty coming out of the trees, heading for the clones. They’re armed, and the clones start to panic hoisting their weapons to make a final stand. These must’ve been the people they were running from.

Anakin drops from the mirror realm into the physical plane, skirting the group’s flank. He steps out from behind the clones and faces the opposing group except-

_(-he hadn’t bothered conjuring up a mortal body for them, he’s an inky black shadow with gleaming fangs, quasar eyes, and burning wings, reshaping himself to appear as what each one of the scoundrel’s deepest fears looks like, he’s darkness, he’s vengeance, he’s demonic-)_

-he doesn’t look human right now. The clones gasp and skitter back, turning their weapons on to him but don’t fire. He can feel their confusion, why they feel safe instead of threatened.

The pirates, however, are quaking with fear, blood streaming from the eyes of the ten that were closest to him, and he can feel their sanity slipping through their fingertips. The ones smart enough to stay in the trees anxiously pointed their weapons at him, ready to fire at a moment’s notice.

**“Leave. No harm is to come to them.”**

The ten nearest to him drop, screaming, blood pouring out of every orifice with vigor now, their bones cracking in tandem.

The Dathomirian in the trees shakes as he speaks. “We can’t do that. They saw us.”

Anakin laughs and the dark sky goes blinding white, huge streaks of lightning racing across it. Thunder crashes and the earth begins to shake, the rain and wind strengthening to a ridiculous speed.

**“Wrong answer, try again.”**

The Dathomirian looks back at his remaining crew and gives a slight nod, thinking Anakin can’t see them. Fools. You can’t hide from a god.

Anakin flicks his hands upwards and the broiling lighting comes crashing down, striking the ten that were nearly dead already, incinerating them instantly. He holds out a hand and his lightning springs outwards, cutting off the remaining twenty in a ring of fire. A few go down, swallowed by the splitting earth, others crushed by trees or swept up by wind, the rest burning in the roaring flames.

He turns back to the clones, the weather returning to normal, Anakin stopping the rain completely. He gazes upon the shocked clones faces, all of them projecting _fear-gratitude-familiar-home_ towards him. He smiles, going to retreat into the upper realm when Rex stops him.

“Wait! Who are you?”

Anakin thinks for a moment, wondering what name to give to the clones.

**“Ekkreth. The Sky-Walker.”**

He _jumps_ and he’s back at Ar-Amu’s side, the personification of the Force reeking a smug pride. 

**_“Come Ekkreth. I have one last vision for you.”_ **

The world blurs and he’s standing at the mouth of a cave on a jungle planet. Ar-Amu’s spirit isn’t right here. Like it’s stilted and trapped. He looks up at the sky and its even more off, the stars swirling into a singular black vortex.

This place is a prison.

There’s movement at the front of the cave and an emaciated woman appears from the mouth of it. Or what was a woman. Her smile is split ear to ear, pale white hair straggly, her face gaunt. Her eyes are black, with only one singular white pinpoint for pupils. She feels twisted; nothing but a rotting shell being corrupted from the immense power it holds within it.

A sinister voice croons the woman’s name.

_“Abeloth.”_

The woman screams and the planet begins to quake, plants dying around her.

_“Abeloth.”_

“Leave me alone! ** _Let me OUT_**!”

Anakin turns back to Ar-Amu, stepping under one of the goddess’s wings. There isn’t much that scares Anakin, but this creature does.

“What is she, Amu?”

**_“A mistake born from fear.”_ **

The world shifts and they’re back in limbo, the burning nebulas cleansing Anakin’s signature.

**_“I have shown you what is coming my son. Prepare yourself and your alsahrai .”_ **

Anakin nods and settles down, preparing to go back to the physical realm. “I will Amu, thank you.”

**_“Remember Ekkreth, sometimes it is not the abomination you can see you must focus on. Sometimes, the true monster is the voice that torments it from the shadows.”_ **

Anakin folds in on himself, collapsing slowly regaining feeling in his physical body. He opens his eyes and he’s back on Tatooine, almost as if he never left. He can barely feel the rain that is quickly drying in the desert heat.

He stands and stretches, making sure all his limbs were in working order, and that he had the right number of them, before he leaps down and tears off in the direction of home.

As much as he didn’t want to, it was time to leave.

The monsters and the war from Obi-Wan’s dreams were waking up. And waking up fast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok y'all, i am in the part of texas that has been affected pretty badly by the weather but my power is on for now, so i cleaned this up as quick as i could and decided to put it out, bc we all need some escapism rn. 
> 
> yuhhhhh the clones have been mentioned, i'm thinkin maybe one or two chapters left before we get into clone wars so yay! also ar-amu is the force if anyone is confused, ar-amu is just how anakin sees the force, bc all force users see the force in their own way. 
> 
> as always, thank you for reading and stay warm out there!


	14. game of survival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> heavy gore, body horror

It was weird being back at the Temple, even after all this time. Ahsoka was raised here, at yet she never felt like the Temple was her home.

She remembers leaving Tatooine like it was yesterday, the somber air of the Lars home as the trio packed their things into the ship they hadn’t touched in over a year. Owen had hugged her fiercely and made her promise to visit while Skyguy had teased him about finally asking out the girl he had been talking about, Beru, and said he expected them to be together by the time they got back.

Obi-Wan had been the picture of a modest and respectful Jedi until Shmi had presented them with three delicate, gold necklaces with a desert rose pendant.

_“To carry a piece of us, the desert, and each other with you at all times.”_

No one had any shame in bawling like younglings after that. They lifted off and watched the dusty orange planet fade into the blur of hyperspace. None of them have taken off the necklace since. 

Obi-Wan then pulled Anakin aside and had the difficult conversation involving Chancellor Palpatine. The stars may have bent a little more than they should have when that was happening but Ahsoka isn’t one to judge. Afterwards, they discussed finding a closer planet to hunt on as Tatooine was a week’s journey away and Coruscant didn’t have any wildlife they _should_ hunt. Anakin argued that the Senate building was a perfect place to hunt, but Obi-Wan had quickly shot that idea down.

They settled on Alderaan, the vast forests complementing Ahsoka’s instincts, but the planet had enough open space so that Anakin didn’t have to completely change his hunting style. It was a little cold for both of them, but it was only a few hours away, so it had to work.

The remote parts of the planet allowed them to freely practice their powers and their limitations, and it was a great outlet for stress relief. She hasn’t had nearly as many slip ups as she was expecting and so far, the Council and the rest of the Jedi Order were only aware of Anakin’s true abilities, not hers or Obi-Wan’s.

She’s roused from her thoughts by the scraping of chairs and realizes that her class was over, and that people were leaving. Whoops. She doesn’t even remember what they were supposed to be learning.

Ahsoka picks up her things and heads out the door, picking up on the distinct _thump-thump-thump_ of Anakin’s heartbeat. If she listens closely, she can pick up the beating of his hearts that were disguised in the Force. He’s standing on the side of the wall and waves her over when he spots her, a cheeky grin lighting up his features.

“There’s my favorite cannibal!” He says as he pulls her into a hug.

Anakin’s hugs were awesome, she supposes it's all the extra limbs. “It’s only cannibalization if I eat the same species as me Skyguy. You should quit skipping class.”

The other padawans give them weird looks as they pass by. They can go fuck themselves.

“Smartass. Come on,” Anakin loops an arm around her shoulders and urges her forwards, “Obi-Wan is waiting.”

It became a routine for any one of them to pick the other up after class or meeting in Obi-Wan’s case. It’s a little excessive, and definitely over-protective but Ahsoka wouldn’t want it any other way.

They make it to the refectory and plop down next to Obi-Wan, who was eating a _salad_ of all things. Ahsoka took a couple sniffs and promptly gagged, while Anakin shuffled away pointedly, dramatically shuddering.

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow and forked another bite into his mouth. “It’s just vegetables you heathens.”

“Eating like that could kill me!”

Anakin nodded sagely. “Eating like that nearly killed _me_.”

“Oh for Force’s sake,” Obi-Wan stowed away the salad and pulled out a container of raw meat.

Ahsoka’s appetite came back with a roaring force and she grabbed the container from Obi-Wan, tearing into it, Anakin doing the same. Obi-Wan, who liked to remind the two of them that he was more sophisticated than them, ate his own portion with a fork and knife.

“I still don’t get why you have to leave,” Ahsoka said when they were finished. “Anison has been unstable for years, it’s a lost cause at this point.”

“Normally I’d be inclined to agree but if Ansion falls to the Confederacy, so will countless other worlds. This conflict must be solved.”

Anakin nudged her shoulder, a ghost of a smile on his face. “Don’t worry Snips, we’ll be back before you know it.”

Ahsoka knew that Anakin and Obi-Wan could handle themselves, but it didn’t mean she was okay with them leaving without her. No little sister is fine with sending her brothers off to a warzone alone. Even if the Republic’s fate as a united government would be determined by their victory in said warzone.

“We really must be going,” Obi-Wan said as he stood up and brushed off his robes. “We shouldn’t keep Master Luminara waiting.”

Anakin huffed, annoyed because they’ve had several conversations regarding the Jedi Master, to the point where every third day of the week is practically a scheduled Luminara hate fest, and stood up as well.

“I’ll walk you to the hangar.”

Obi-Wan dipped his head, his _fondness-exasperation-pride-unsurprised_ slipping into the Force. “Of course.”

When they reached the hangar, she hugged Anakin and Obi-Wan as tightly as she could, willing the Force to keep them safe. “Be careful.”

Anakin smiled. “Always.”

Obi-Wan snorted, rolling his eyes. “Really? I didn’t know reckless was a new synonym for careful.”

Anakin has the audacity to act offended. “I am _always_ careful.”

Ahsoka chuckled to herself as the Jedi continued bickering as they boarded the ship. She stayed until the red cruiser lifted off and rocketed out of her eyesight.

Ahsoka sighed as she gazed around the empty hangar, rolling her pendant between her fingers. It was weird that the hangar was completely empty, it almost always had something or someone in it. There weren't even any droids here. She narrows her eyes, and backs up slowly, becoming more aware of the nagging feeling of danger buried in her chest. She makes it to the door and Ahsoka feels her senses suddenly go dull, the world going dark.

_“Ashokah.”_

That isn’t her name. Or is it?

_“Ashokah!”_

It is her name. Her name spoken correctly. Her name in Togruti. Who’s calling her that?

**_“Ashokah!”_ **

Ahsoka opens her eyes.

“There you are my daughter.”

She whirls and an adult female Togruta is standing in front of her. She has markings and coloring like her own, her montrals curling over like a queen’s crown. She’s smiling under the warm sun, the epitome of effortless grace.

Ahsoka glances down and finds her feet bare, her toes sunken in warm earth and red-brown grass. There’s the sound of wind rustling through tall trees and a sweet smell that reminds her of home. She’s on Shili.

Ahsoka peers at the woman, taking a tentative step forward. “Mom?”

Her mother smiles wider, relief overtaking her features. “Hello, wildheart.”

Joy rises through her body and she starts to sprint forwards, wanting nothing more to see her true mother again, to hug her and tell her about her life, to tell her how much she missed her. She’s three strides in when she realizes that something is wrong. That something is _off_.

Her smile is a bit too wide, her arms too long, her eyes too dull despite the bright predatory glare in them.

Ahsoka pauses, sliding into a half defensive stance. She tilts her head towards her mother’s chest, listening for her heartbeat. It’s _wrong._ Ahsoka snarls, flexing her claws. “You’re not my mother.”

The imposter’s smile drops, turning into a sneer. “You’re more perceptive than most.”

She holds out a hand and Shili is torn away, the soft dirt becoming packed and hard, the temperate climate turning tropical.

Ahsoka turns back to the Togruta and she isn’t a Togruta anymore. She’s humanoid or was humanoid, and there’s a horrifying familiarity about her features. Ahsoka’s breath quickens and her heart starts to race erratically. This was the creature from Obi-Wan’s dreams, the creature Ar-Amu showed Anakin on Tatooine. And now she's having a vision of her.

“Abeloth.”

The woman smiles, her split flesh dripping blood. “It is an honor to finally meet the sister of the Force incarnate.”

Ahsoka scowls, slipping into hunter-mode. She crouches, starting to circle Abeloth. “What do you want?”

Abeloth tracks her movements, turning with her. “In another reality, you would’ve been my Daughter. However, in that reality I would’ve never been freed. You are a lethal creature, _Ashokah_ , I would’ve been proud to call you mine.”

She growls, still scanning for weaknesses. “Answer the question.”

“Eons ago, I was drawn to this planet. I served the Ones, I met their needs, I was everything to them. The Father came to recognize me as his equal and his children came to see me as their Mother. I kept the peace between my Daughter and my Son, and my love kept the Father happy. But I was mortal, and they were not. I found a way to be with them forever and yet they still _left_ me, trapping me here for eternity.”

Abeloth grins, the light mist surrounding her growing more present, her teeth sharpening into fangs, arms turning into clawed tentacles. “What I want is freedom, to leave this planet, to not be anyone’s _slave_ because they think they have power over me.”

**_“I want a family to stand by as I burn the galaxy to crisp.”_ **

“I won’t let you do that.”

Ahsoka reaches deep and releases a deadly wave of sonic energy, slamming it into Abeloth, flying her across the clearing into a tree opposite of her, the force of it stripping off layers of flesh. She holds her other hand out towards the trees and they grow rapidly, forming into spiked branches and she skewers them into the creature’s body. She flicks her fingers and conjures the flowing blood into malleable energy and uses it to split open Abeloth’s chest. She calls it back and Abeloth’s heart comes flying out of her chest, right into Ahsoka’s outstretched hand.

She palms the heart in her hands, taking in the feeling of warm dripping blood, the solidness of the muscle in her hands. This isn't a vision. She's actually _here._ This was real. 

Ahsoka hisses and throws the heart onto the ground, turning to leave and find a way off the planet. How did she even get here to begin with? Anakin and Obi-Wan said that nothing could come in or out of this place.

She picks up on the squelching of flesh and she looks back at Abeloth’s body, icy fear racing down her spine. She’s seen first-hand how Anakin heals, how he’s mentioned that he can’t truly _die_. She should’ve known it wouldn’t be that easy.

The woman’s body is healing at an alarming rate, and she watches as her heart regrows, her mauled chest close, her skin stitching back together. Abeloth opens her eyes and they’re pitch black now, no twinkling of mini suns. The monster _screeches_ and the planet comes to life, the swirling stars in the sky above her lighting up like hyperspace, the ground beginning to tremble and groan.

_“Obi-Wan told me that in some legends lightsabers can phase through different realities and cut through things we can’t see with the naked eye. Because sabers exist in multiple different worlds at one time.”_

Ahsoka reaches for her side, feeling for her lightsaber and it isn’t there. She hears wood splintering and looks to find that Abeloth had broken free of her restraints and was barreling towards her. She sprints into the trees for cover, going with her instincts and leaping into the highest branches, jumping from treetop to treetop.

Ahsoka spent nearly two years on Tatooine, she knows she won’t be able to run from Abeloth forever. This is _her_ planet, her territory. She's in command here. Something rustles from below her and she gets the sinking feeling that she’s running out of time.

She stops, panting heavily, and decides to use the last of her waning energy to make one last ditch survival effort. She clasps a hand around the desert rose, praying to Ar-Amu that her _alsahrai_ hear her. 

**_“EKKRETH!”_ **

A cold force pulls her off the branch and sends her tumbling to the ground below.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dun dun dun. i don't really have anything to say for this chapter, this was like a one-session thing. 
> 
> oh wait i lied uhhh link to the desert rose pendant below if you want a visual.  
> https://www.unrulycollective.com/new-products/desert-rose-selenite-crystal-necklace


	15. east of eden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> as usual, gore

Anakin is half-awake when it happens, struggling to calm himself down after the mission. Despite the bad odds, Ansion was a success and the planet was secure.

****

**_“EKKRETH!”_ **

****

An indescribable pain races though Anakin’s body and his pendant flashes bright white. Ahsoka was in trouble. He moves with blind panic and instinct, vaulting himself though the shadows and materializing in Obi-Wan’s room. His Master is already awake, setting up a holo-call to the Jedi Temple.

“It’s Snips,” He stammers out, using every bit of self-control he has in his body to not fall apart right there. His legs are jelly, his fingers numb, he feels like he’s trying swim through the chill of carbonite. “She’s in danger…I…I can’t _feel_ her Obi-Wan! I know we play jokes, but this isn’t a joke! What… _how_!?”

Obi-Wan moves towards him, running his hands down his arms, projecting calmness in the Force. “At ease, padawan, I felt it too. We will find her, I assure you.”

The holoprojector blinks and Masters Windu, Koon, and Yoda appear. “Master Kenobi.”

Obi-Wan goes straight to business. “The Initiate, Ahsoka Tano, what is her status?”

Plo Koon visibly saddens, his shoulders dropping some. “Little ‘Soka was abducted a week and a half ago.”

Lightning roars and flashes, and the temperature of the room oscillates from an unbearable heat to a frigid cold. “What! How come no one told us!”

His Master hold out a placating hand and gently pushes him back. “What my padawan means to say is that he and I are rather close to Ahsoka, his heightened abilities could have found her earlier.”

Always the diplomat, his Jedi.

“Because of your _closeness,_ ” Master Windu says with a ghost of a condescending air, “We voted to not inform you until Initiate Tano was found. Ansion is a strategic planet to the Republic and the two of you could not afford to be distracted.”

His blood boils and he doesn’t bother keeping the growl out of his voice. “Where was she last seen.”

Yoda dips his head, his tone apologetic, ears drooping. “Taken from the Temple hanger, she was. Security footage, erased. An idea on who took her and where she may be, I have. The Dark Side, in the hangar I felt. The Sith have her, I suspect.”

Master Koon nods, but his mood does not brighten. “We tracked a suspicious ship heading towards the Kessel System. They listed no manifest, were in Coruscant a day before the abduction and left a few hours after, and the serial numbers were scrubbed off and erased. Unfortunately, that’s all we could gather. We’ve sent Knights out to Kessel to start a manual search.”

_Kessel?_

Obi-Wan’s eyes widen some but he quickly collects himself. “We’ll borrow a ship from the natives and head to Kessel immediately, Master Unduli can take the cruiser back to Coruscant.”

Obi-Wan ends the call without any preamble and collapses back onto his bed, his hand over his mouth, eyes painfully squeezed shut.

“Obi-Wan,” He starts slowly, “The Maw is in the Kessel system.”

“I know.”

Anakin blinks rapidly, his eyes skittering back and forth. “But Ar-Amu said that it was secure! And Padmé said that her spies confirmed it, the stations are intact! She can’t be free! It’s impossible!”

Obi-Wan let out a deep sigh, meeting Anakin’s eyes. “I don’t believe she is free. We would have felt it. But the chaos in the galaxy, the rise in visions we’re having, it cannot be a coincidence. Whoever this Sith is, is trying to raise Abeloth themselves, and clearly, it’s working.”

“Then why would they take Ahsoka? She isn’t strong enough to free her, at least I don't think she is yet. No one even knows she’s different!”

“But _you_ are, dearest, and it’s practically common knowledge that you’re the closest thing she has to family. If the Sith could find a way to place Ahsoka in the Maw, perhaps they hoped your rescue efforts would disrupt it and free Abeloth in the process.”

Anakin tries to calm his racing heart, latching on to his Master’s signature. He would know what to do. He always does. “So what now?”

“We go to Kessel and find out what exactly we’re dealing with. It’s time to meet the monster ourselves.”

Ahsoka was tired.

No, tired is an oversimplification.

Ahsoka was exhausted, spent, drained, _completely over this shit_. She feels like she’s been running forever. Time passes differently here, almost as if time doesn’t exist at all. She catches glimpses of herself in the reflections of standing water and has to take a moment to remember that the body staring back was her own.

Ahsoka. Was that her name? No that can’t be right. _Ashokah_ , that sounded familiar. Unused, but familiar.

_“I guess we’re one in the same Snips.”_

Snips. Skyguy. Anakin. Obi-Wan.

Ahsoka puts her hands to her head, yanking and clawing at her montrals. She was forgetting, she promised herself that she wouldn’t forget. She was going to see her family again.

**_“Who is Ekkreth, Ashokah?”_ **

****

Ahsoka screams. “STOP IT!”

**_“Your brother? He can’t hear you anymore Ashokah, join me and I can make the pain stop.”_ **

****

“I TOLD YOU TO STOP!”

**_“Join me and you can see Ekkreth again.”_ **

****

The brush rustles in front of her. Abeloth’s found her again. Ahsoka lets out a guttural roar.

**“I SAID ENOUGH!”**

A wave of raw energy flies out of her body-

_(-her true body, the one Anakin had been promising that would come in time, the body of hers that was beyond the mortal plane, her claws are longer, her teeth sharper, a circlet of blooming roses crowns her head, growing directly out of her skull, each vine filled with deadly black thorns weeping blood, it circles around her, dripping down her face like war-paint, flows down her arms in swirling patterns as her badges of strength, of survival, of power-)_

-and the planet shudders, shakes, _collapses_ around her. There’s a bone chilling crack that reverberates throughout the sky and the numerous vortexes above her dissipate in number some. She turns back to Abeloth and the creature is nothing but a smear of shattered bones and crushed organs on the ground. It’ll take her awhile to recover from that one.

_I won’t forget, I won’t forget, I won’t forget._

Ahsoka’s long gone by the time the bones start to regenerate.

“There’s Centerpoint Station, dead ahead.”

Obi-Wan fiddles with a few controls as Anakin slows the ship down to a reasonable speed.

“Do you sense anything?”

Anakin reaches out, scanning the station with every sense he had. Nothing. He shakes his head. “Check to make sure before we move on.”

Obi-Wan’s eyes glow faintly as he scans the station. “I can’t sense anything either.”

Anakin fires up the engines, putting them near top sub-light speed and sends them deeper into the Maw. “Well, there’s only one place left.”

Anakin’s always loved interstellar phenomena, being a galactic child stuck on a desert world. He’s always found beauty in the cold environment of space, he often dreamed about seeing all of it’s wonders. But the Maw was one place he never promised to venture to. Something about the swirling gasses and numerous black holes screamed danger to him.

_But now this stupid Sith is making me figure out why I hate this place so much._

They travel deeper and deeper into the Maw, the outside galaxy becoming quieter, unnaturally so. Then the noise came back, like something or someone was yelling at him from the other side of the Temple. He could tell it was _loud_ but the sound was faint and muffled despite his abilities.

“You hear that Obi-Wan?”

His Master’s eyes glow brighter, energy rolling off him in soft yellow waves. “Just barely. Head a few degrees to the left, you’re off a bit.”

Pain slams into his chest. Ahsoka would’ve been able to figure out what the noise was.

Suddenly the faint noise becomes clear, it’s a voice, it’s _voices_ , thousands of them, screaming out to the galaxy in hopes it would be able to be heard.

**_“JOIN ME. JOIN ME. FREE ME. HELP ME.”_ **

Sinkhole Station appears and dread crawls up Anakin’s body like ice.

“Master? You seeing what I’m seeing?”

Obi-Wan’s fear slowly leaks into the room’s scent. There’s an audible gulp. If Anakin is being completely honest it could’ve come from either one of them. “I’m afraid so.”

Sinkhole Station isn’t there anymore. The remnants of it are scattered around them, what was the main part of the station completely split in two.

**“I WON’T FORGET! I WON’T FORGET! I WILL NOT BREAK!”**

Ahsoka. Anakin _looks_ with the Force and he can see Sinkhole Station’s scattered pieces surrounded by Ahsoka’s _blood red-lethal white-forest green_ signature, her power still lashing out and trying to destroy the rest of the Station. She wanted to obliterate it.

They’re both so entranced by what they’re seeing, they fail to notice the bodies floating around them until one of them slams into the transparisteel.

Anakin jumps, snarling, one hand hovering over his lightsaber. “What the hell!”

Obi-Wan is in nearly the same position, until he takes in the appearance of the body. “He’s Kel Dor, he could still be alive. Bring him through the airlock, he could tell us what happened here.”

The two of them rush down to the airlock, Anakin keeping a steady hold on the Kel Dor through the Force. He slowly lowers him down, Obi-Wan prodding at his mind with a few gentle taps. The Kel Dor suddenly launches himself up, panicked and lashing out feebly in the Force. He backs up against the wall, slightly shaking.

_“He’s Force-sensitive Master.”_

Obi-Wan holds his hands up in a non-threatening gesture, speaking slowly. “I am Obi-Wan Kenobi, and this is Anakin Skywalker, might I ask what your name is?”

“My name?” The Kel Dor’s voice is raspy, even through the mask he was wearing, like he hasn’t spoken for years. “It doesn’t matter, all that matters is getting back to her,” He glances out of the window and his shock fades into fury. “No…no, no, no, NO!”

He goes to paw at the window, but Anakin stops him with a firm Force push. As much as he’s like to talk to the Kel Dor, Anakin knows the diplomacy is best left to his Master.

“Easy now,” Obi-Wan says calmly. “Who do you need to get back to? We can find them.”

The Kel Dor lets out a hysterical laugh. “You can’t. Beyond shadows is the only place the Mind Walkers can see Mother and the Station is gone. That wretched Togruta girl destroyed it.” He finishes bitterly.

A righteous fury courses through Anakin’s body and he fights to keep himself stable. He’s waited long enough, he wanted to see his sister _now._ “The girl, where is she?! Why did she destroy the Station?!”

_“Anakin-“_

_“No Obi-Wan, he’s barely alive. I’m gonna find out where Ahsoka is.”_

The Kel Dor huffs, his breath starting to quicken. “She was _special_ ,” The Kel Dor spits out the sentence like it left a bad taste in his mouth. “She could actually visit Mother, so Mother brought her home. But the stupid girl doesn’t want to be there, and she destroyed the Station. I’m nothing without Mother, nothing, nothing, _nothing_ …”

Quicker than they could react the Kel Dor reaches up and tears off his mask, his eyes evaporating in the oxygen rich air and choking before he stills. Anakin doesn’t bother checking to see if he was still alive, and neither does Obi-Wan. 

Obi-Wan holds out a hand and the Kel Dor's body is overtaken in a blue-orange light, burning so hot that the fire doesn't even leave ashes. 

“Beyond shadows is Abeloth’s realm and because Ahsoka is bonded to me, she can actually be pulled through. Physically make it on planet.” His voice shakes, desperately trying to fight off the closing of his throat and his eyes well up with tears. “This…this is all my fault.”

Obi-Wan grasps his shoulder and squeezes tightly, locking eyes with him. “No, this is not your fault. This is the fault of the Sith. They took her, they put her in this position. Both me and Ahsoka were already different long before we met you. You may have caused that otherness to grow at an exponential rate, but had you not come into our lives, we both would not be prepared for our powers and situations like this. You heard her, and I know you can feel her. Ahsoka is still alive and strong, clearly much stronger than you thought, and we _will_ bring her home.”

Anakin nods, wiping at the tears that threaten to fall. He takes a few calming breaths, just like how Obi-Wan taught him. “Ok. You’re right. What’s our next move?”

“Well, it seems we have two options. Centerpoint Station is still intact so the Maw is somewhat stable and Abeloth’s powers cannot reach from beyond that point. We can either try and navigate the ship down to the planet and fly out from there, or you teleport us down and we leave the ship here. No matter what we do, there is a chance she could try and come back with us.”

Anakin weighs the options in his head and decides. He holds out a hand and gives Obi-Wan a shaky smile. “Ready?”

Obi-Wan places his hand in his, a warm weight that anchors him to reality. Obi-Wan gives hive a small smile back. “Like you even have to ask.”

Anakin jumps and the Son of the Force is unleashed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok so the maw & kessel was shown in solo so if you need a visual reference, head over to yt and look that up. since centerpoint and sinkhole are not canon i did have to change what the maw looked like in my head, but that's the best visual i could give. 
> 
> next chapter will be a bit longer (prolly 6k words) and i will be going into atoc and all that so yeah! and yes padmé does have some knowledge on the whole thing but that's to be expanded on next chapter. 
> 
> thanks for reading ya'll have a great one!


End file.
